Shell’s annual general meeting in London was met with protests from pressure groups such as Greenpeace, Fossil Free London, Neon and Tipping Point.
Fossil Free London said more than 100 activists disrupted the opening speech by chief executive Wael Sawan, while some tried to take over the stage.
Shareholder activist group Follow This proposed a resolution urging Shell to boost its efforts to combat climate change, supported by one-fifth of shareholders who voted.
“Given that up to 99 percent of shareholders voted with the board on the other 25 resolutions, 20 percent of support and a large number of abstentions despite a negative board recommendation clearly shows shareholder dissatisfaction,” said Follow This founder Mark van Baal.
Shell chairman Andrew Mackenzie earlier claimed the resolution would “harm” the business, lowering the company’s “capacity to help the world”.
Tuesday’s AGM followed Shell’s sharp rise in first-quarter profit on rebounding oil prices, reflecting huge earnings at rivals BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil and TotalEnergies.
The carbon-heavy sector has faced harsh criticism from the green lobby over plans to move away from dirty fossil fuels and toward cleaner renewable energy.
Campaigners have blasted Shell over its aim to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050, accusing it of “greenwashing” or presenting its operations as climate-friendly.
“Shut down Shell,” protesters shouted as they also disrupted speeches from Mackenzie and other board members.
Another group of protestors sang: “Go to hell Shell and don’t you come back no more, no more, no more, no more” to the tune of “Hit the Road Jack” by Ray Charles.
Members of the group’s security team reportedly removed dozens of protesters from the event.
Earlier this month, Shell reported that profit after tax jumped 22 percent to $8.7 billion in the three months to March from a year earlier.
The news followed rival BP’s announcement on Tuesday that it returned to net profit of $8.2 billion in the period.
Surging profits have sparked outrage from critics as Britons face a cost-of-living crisis on soaring electricity and gas bills, leading to accusations of profiteering by energy giants.