COVID-19: Shell’s Thailand response

Summary | Updated, Jun 23, 2020 08:38

#Shellcare, Staying Safe Together: Five Principles to Manage the COVID-19 Crisis from Shell Thailand

As the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases continue to rise, the pandemic and the measures prompted to contain it are having a direct impact on our daily lives. From nationwide lockdowns to social distancing, these measures are affecting how we live, which in turn affects the entire economy.

The United Nations has referred to the pandemic as “the worst crisis in 75 years.” For businesses, this is an unprecedented situation. Recently, we have witnessed businesses collapsing at lightning speed – from layoffs to closedowns, at a time where nobody can predict when the crisis will end.

Over the past three months, since the Ministry of Public Health announced the country’s first case of COVID-19, Shell Thailand has been monitoring the situation closely and has been preparing our organization to handle the COVID-19 crisis. 

Business transformations are of particular interest. Moving forward, the company will base our operations on the principles we have prepared for COVID-19, focusing on safety - a value at the heart of our corporate culture.

Panun Prachuabmoh, Country Chairman for the Shell Company of Thailand has been working closely with executives and Business Continuity Plan team including staff at offices and sites during the COVID-19 situation. Shell is strictly following Shell Health instruction and Department of Disease Control, Ministry of Public Health measures to ensure our staff, customers and business partners get through this safely. We are learning and adapting many lessons from the rapid and effective response implemented by our colleagues in China and continue to promote working from home with efficiency among all staff, allowing operations to continue smoothly, all while prioritizing safety.

“We care for the safety and well-being of our staff, customers, and all stakeholders, which is why we have put thorough measures in place. At the same time, we need to ensure business continuity and continue to deliver fuels for trucks and ambulances, lubricants for all drivers, and bitumen to help reduce the shortages of these supplies during the time,” Panun said.

Here are five principles to manage the COVID-19 crisis from Shell Thailand:

1. Everyone’s safety comes first
“The first principle is: How do we ensure the utmost safety for everyone?” said Panun Prachubmoh, Country Chairman for the Shell Company of Thailand on his approach to handling the COVID-19 pandemic. “In managing the organization during this crisis, we follow strict safety guidelines such as having our staff work from home to slow the spread. Only a few employees whose job functions require their physical presence need to come in. For these cases, we provide protective gear and impose strict ‘social distancing’ measures for working in the office. As for our oil depots, only essential employees are allowed to come in for work following Department of Disease Control guidelines. All Shell staff can also contact Employee Assistance Helpline for any further assistance.”

2. The customers are always important, no matter what the situation
Shell Thailand operates with a mission to “Make Life’s Journeys Better”, to run a business that does not focus solely on monetary gain but aims to improve the quality of life for Thais and society, for now and for the future. Amidst the challenges posed by COVID-19, Shell continues to deliver fuels, lubricants, and bitumen for our customers to ensure adequate supply of fuel and keep the economy running. To ensure safety of our staff and customers, we have stringent safety and hygiene standards at our service stations. We provide hand sanitizers to help staff, customers and business partners maintain proper hygiene during their journeys. In our Shell SELECT and Delicafé stores at our service stations, we have removed the seating areas to prevent gatherings and now only offer takeaway service at these stations.

3. Managing our resources in line with public needs
An outbreak of this scale requires the collaborative efforts of both private and public sectors. The Shell team undertook an assessment of the situation and has allocated donations for three stages: critical, stable, and recovery. Shell Thailand recently made a donation to the Ramathibodi Hospital to support the purchase of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) equipment, which is required in preparation for the future stages of the outbreak.

“What we’re doing now is being carried out using the same timing as we would in other crises. We identify the needs of the public then manage our resources and budget to survive the crisis. This is possible through meaningful collaboration and a clear understanding of the public’s needs.”

4. Embracing change, staying flexible, and adapting accordingly
The COVID-19 situation affects everyone: from our businesses and our customers to our partners. Shell’s main principle in working through a crisis is our ability to embrace change, stay flexible, and adapt according to the situation. Shell has implemented a host of changes. For example, we have realigned our marketing budget to support other more urgent matters. Our “Imagine the Future Scenarios” competition, which challenges students to imagine how we will live, work and play in the future, has been migrated to online platforms. Panun said: “We must thrive and perform our duties to deliver the best outcome for our customers and stakeholders. In all the work we do, the most important thing is to be flexible. It is challenging under pressure and in uncertain times, and I would like to thank all of my staff, who are still delivering the best performance despite facing these new challenges.

5. Collaborating to build solidarity and safety together
A strong team is the foundation of handling a crisis successfully, including the current one. It has always been our belief at Shell that “who we are” and our solidarity is critical to solving any problems and creating new possibilities in the future.

“We are proud that, through our work, we play a part in helping everyone affected by the COVID-19 situation, from our staff, partners, and customers, to the doctors and medical personnel who are trying their hardest to battle it. We would like to thank the medical staff who are putting all their efforts into containing the outbreak and making Shell their Trusted Partner. Even in these unprecedented times, we are doing our utmost to make sure we will overcome, together, safely.”

Shell’s thailand response to COVID-19
The Shell Company of Thailand Ltd. led by Mr. Panun Prachuabmoh, Country Chairman, (left) presents financial assistance for medical support to Ramathibodi Hospital represented by Professor Piyamitr Sritara, MD, FRCPT, FACP, Dean of Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University (right).

COVID-19: Shell’s global response

As the global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to grow, Shell is putting the safety and health of our people and our customers first, along with the safe operations of all our businesses. We continue to monitor the situation daily – country-by-country – and to follow the advice of the relevant national health authorities. And, given the very dynamic situation, we are in regular contact with our suppliers and key customers.

At each operating site and office around the world we have business continuity plans in place to sustain our operations and supply chains, so that we can continue to provide vital energy products to countries, communities, businesses, motorists and homeowners.

We are increasing production of isopropyl alcohol, a key chemical ingredient of hand-sanitising liquids. Our manufacturing plants at Pernis in the Netherlands and Sarnia in Canada, for example, are diverting production resources to make isopropyl alcohol. In the Netherlands, we are making 2.5 million litres available free of charge for the healthcare sector.

Shell is doing many things to keep our staff and customers safe and healthy across our global network of service stations. These include carrying out enhanced cleaning operations, increasing stocks of sanitation products and other essential goods, and health monitoring for all our staff.

We are focused, of course, in each country on supporting our employees. Office-based staff in many countries, following the advice of local authorities, are now either encouraged or required to work from home. For those working at operating sites, both onshore and offshore, we are putting in place additional measures to keep staff healthy.

We will continue to focus on keeping people around the world safe and healthy. And we will provide regular updates on our actions to staff and customers as the situation develops.

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Media

Shell partners with the Chaipattana foundation in fostering recovery from COVID-19

Bangkok – Thailand: The Shell Company of Thailand led by Mr. Panun Prachuabmoh, Country Chairman, continues to foster the safety and well-being of Thais by presenting 2,000,000 baht to The Chaipattana Foundation COVID-19 Aid Fund (and Other Pandemics). The financial assistance will support the work of medical staff who are putting their lives on the line to treat COVID-19 patients, communal hospitals in rural areas and especially in-need areas. Shell Thailand is moving forward to support and improve Thai people’s safety and well-being after the pandemic.

Shell cares for Thais, provides financial assistance for medical support to foster recovery from COVID-19 crisis Strengthening sanitary measures – continuously promoting safety nationwide

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