BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 12. Shell Energy North America, a subsidiary of Shell plc, is reshaping its US power portfolio through two transactions that will expand its exposure to the PJM electricity market while allowing it to realize significant value from a power asset serving New England.
The company has agreed to acquire 100 percent of the equity in Hunlock Creek Generating LLC, which owns 169 megawatts (MW) of natural gas-fired generation capacity in Pennsylvania, while separately agreeing to sell its interests in RISEC Holdings LLC to Constellation Energy Generation LLC for $715 million.
Both transactions are subject to regulatory approvals and are expected to close in the first quarter of 2027.
The deals illustrate Shell Energy North America's strategy of combining physical power assets with its trading and optimization capabilities, selectively acquiring generation capacity where it can strengthen its position in major US electricity markets while monetizing assets when market conditions create attractive returns.
“These transactions reflect our dynamic approach to managing our trading portfolio,” Andrew Smith, Shell's President of Trading & Supply, said.
“We selectively invest in assets that strengthen our market position and create value, while remaining ready to realize value when market conditions present attractive opportunities,” he added.
The transactions are expected to close in the first quarter of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals.
Expanding Shell's position in PJM
The acquisition of Hunlock is expected to strengthen Shell Energy North America's position in PJM Interconnection, the largest wholesale electricity market and grid operator in the US.
PJM coordinates the movement of electricity across 13 states and the District of Columbia and serves more than 65 million people. The market covers a major portion of the US Mid-Atlantic and Midwest power system, making access to flexible generation capacity strategically important for companies active in wholesale electricity trading.
Hunlock's portfolio comprises a two-unit, 125-MW combined-cycle power plant and a 44-MW simple-cycle peaking plant. Both facilities are natural gas-fired, giving Shell access to generation assets capable of responding to changing power demand and market conditions.
The combination of baseload and peaking generation is particularly relevant to power traders because gas-fired plants can provide flexibility when electricity demand rises or when output from intermittent renewable sources such as wind and solar fluctuates.
Hunlock is currently owned by Riverview Power Holdings LLC, an indirect subsidiary of Castleton Commodities International LLC.
Shell said the acquisition is projected to generate returns exceeding the investment requirements it set for its power business at its 2025 Capital Markets Day.
The transaction also fits into Shell Energy North America's broader strategy of focusing on power markets where the company can leverage its trading, optimization and risk-management capabilities, supported by access to flexible power plants and battery energy storage.
$715 million RISEC sale
At the same time, Shell is selling its interests in RISEC Holdings to Constellation Energy Generation for $715 million.
RISEC owns a 609-MW, two-unit combined-cycle gas turbine power plant serving the New England electricity market.
Shell Energy North America had previously acquired RISEC, securing access to the plant's capacity and associated trading opportunities. The company said the arrangement enabled it to generate value through its asset-backed trading strategy.
The sale will allow Shell to bring forward returns that it had expected to generate through longer-term ownership of the asset, with the transaction resulting in a significant gain on the sale.
SENA has maintained an energy conversion agreement with RISEC covering the plant's full electricity output since 2019. That agreement will terminate once the transaction is completed.
The sale therefore represents a different element of Shell's portfolio strategy from the Hunlock acquisition: while the Pennsylvania deal increases Shell's physical exposure in a strategically important US power market, the RISEC transaction allows the company to monetize an existing asset and redeploy capital.
Power trading at the center of Shell's US strategy
Shell Energy North America is a full-service energy company that trades and markets natural gas, wholesale and retail electricity, environmental products and risk-management solutions.
The company has more than 25 years of experience in US gas and power markets and records more than 210 million megawatt-hours of annual wholesale and retail power sales across North America.
Its strategy is closely linked to Shell's wider global trading business, which spans crude oil, refined products, natural gas and LNG, electrical power, environmental products, biofuels, chemical feedstocks and freight.
Physical generation assets are particularly valuable to energy traders because they can provide a source of electricity, capacity and market flexibility that can be optimized alongside financial and physical trading positions.
Shell has been active in US energy markets for more than a century and has developed a broad portfolio extending from oil and gas production and LNG to renewable power, solar, battery storage, biofuels, hydrogen and electric-vehicle charging.
From gas-fired generation to solar and storage
While the Hunlock transaction expands Shell's gas-fired generation portfolio, the company's US energy activities increasingly span multiple forms of energy and supporting infrastructure.
Shell owns 100 percent of Savion, a Kansas City-based solar developer with solar and energy-storage projects under development. The company also has interests in onshore wind projects in California and Texas and provides renewable power options to commercial and industrial customers.
Battery storage is another component of Shell's US portfolio. The company owns sonnen, a manufacturer of smart solar energy storage systems, giving Shell exposure to a technology that can help balance electricity supply and demand and support the integration of intermittent renewable generation.
Shell's US solar footprint also includes solar installations supporting its own operations, including a 326-kilowatt system at its Stockton distribution terminal and a 300-kilowatt installation at the Shell Technology Center in Houston. The company also holds a stake in Silicon Ranch, a solar company headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.
Shell's diversified approach reflects the changing structure of US electricity markets, where demand growth, renewable deployment, grid constraints and the increasing need for flexible generation and storage are reshaping the value of power assets.
Broader US energy footprint
Shell's US operations extend well beyond electricity.
The company says its total US production share stands at around 377,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. It operates 10 deep-water production hubs in the Gulf of America, alongside one non-operated hub and an extensive subsea infrastructure network.
Shell describes itself as the largest producing leaseholder in the Gulf of America and says its production has among the lowest greenhouse gas intensity when compared with oil and gas producers belonging to the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers.
The company also has a significant US midstream business, owning and operating approximately 3,400 miles of active pipelines, five crude and refined-product storage facilities and two caverns. Around 70 percent of Shell's Gulf of America production flows through Shell-operated pipelines, while its US infrastructure transports approximately 1.5 billion barrels of crude oil, refined products, chemicals and natural gas liquids annually.
In LNG, Shell Trading (US) Company is active across natural gas and liquefied natural gas markets, with Shell describing itself as the largest buyer of US-produced LNG for export. The company has also developed a global LNG marine-bunkering network.
Shell's expanding low-carbon activities
Shell's US portfolio also includes businesses linked to lower-carbon energy.
The company has an ownership stake in LanzaJet, which uses catalytic conversion to produce sustainable aviation fuel from alcohol. Shell has signed sustainable aviation fuel supply agreements with airlines including JetBlue, Alaska Airlines and Delta, as well as corporate customers such as Google, Deloitte and American Express Global Business Travel.
Shell also operates renewable natural gas facilities including Shell Galloway, Shell Bovarius and Shell Friesian.
In transportation, Shell operates EV charging points at Shell-branded fuel stations and standalone EV hubs in high-growth electric-vehicle markets. The company also operates three heavy-duty hydrogen truck refueling stations in California, supporting freight movements from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach into Southern California.
Its US retail network comprises approximately 12,000 Shell-branded fuel stations, serving around seven million customers each day.
Refining, chemicals and lubricants
Shell maintains a substantial industrial footprint in the US, including refining, chemicals, lubricants and technology businesses.
Its Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Norco in Louisiana combines refining and chemicals operations. Shell also operates chemical manufacturing facilities in Louisiana, Pennsylvania and Texas, producing materials used in products ranging from soaps and household cleaning products to plastics and construction materials.
The company's US lubricant operations include six blending and packaging plants in Michigan, Texas, West Virginia and California, while Shell also holds a 49-percent stake in Blue Tide Environmental, which produces re-refined base oil in Baytown, Texas.
Shell Catalysts and Technologies provides catalysts, technical services and licensed process technologies to refineries, gas-treatment facilities and chemical plants worldwide, with US operations in California, Indiana and Louisiana.
Against this backdrop, the Hunlock and RISEC transactions underscore Shell's intention to actively manage individual assets rather than simply expand its US power footprint. The company is seeking to combine physical generation, trading and optimization capabilities while maintaining the flexibility to deploy capital toward markets and technologies where it sees the strongest opportunities.
