Shell LiveWire Supports 21 Louisiana Entrepreneurs to Drive Local Economic Growth in 2026
Shell LiveWire Louisiana and the Louisiana Small Business Development Center support local entrepreneurs with training, coaching, and networks to grow strong businesses and communities.
NEW ORLEANS, April 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Shell USA, Inc., in collaboration with the Louisiana Small Business Development Center (LSBDC), selected 21 local entrepreneurs to join the 2026 Louisiana cohort of Shell LiveWire, Shell’s flagship enterprise development program. Now in its fourth year in Louisiana, the program helps small business owners grow through access to knowledge, skills, networks and resources that support long term economic opportunity.
Shell LiveWire’s 2026 Louisiana cohort brings together entrepreneurs from a wide range of industries, including health and wellness services, counseling and diagnostics, construction and electrical trades, logistics and transportation, veterinary care, professional and business services, food and catering, photography, outdoor recreation, and lawn care.
Meet the 2026 Shell LiveWire Louisiana Cohort.
“Shell LiveWire Louisiana invests in entrepreneurs who are strengthening the state’s economy today and building its future,” said Colette Hirstius, President, Shell USA, Inc. “Supporting small businesses drives job creation, economic diversification, and stronger communities, underscoring Shell’s commitment to Louisiana for more than 100 years.”
The program aims to connect participants to support networks within their markets to help build and expand businesses across 13 rural parishes in South Louisiana: Ascension, Assumption, East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge, Iberville, Jefferson, Lafourche, Livingston, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Mary, and Terrebonne.
LSBDC acts as the local implementing partner for the program, bringing a proven curriculum customized to meet the needs of the Shell LiveWire Louisiana cohort. The sessions are delivered by local subject-matter experts in marketing, finance, and team management.
“Each entrepreneur selected for this cohort brings a strong vision for growth and a deep commitment to their community,” said Heidi Melancon, Associate LSBDC State Director. “Our partnership with Shell LiveWire allows us to match that ambition with expert guidance, tailored support, and a trusted network that helps businesses scale with confidence.”
About Shell LiveWire
Shell LiveWire is the flagship enterprise development program of Shell. Shell LiveWire’s mission is to stimulate local economies by promoting entrepreneurship, innovation, and meaningful employment. Every year, Shell LiveWire supports thousands of individuals in accessing knowledge, skills, networks, and resources to turn business ideas into successful enterprises that provide sustainable incomes, create jobs, strengthen local communities and drive innovation.
Starting in Scotland in 1982, the program is now active in 16 countries around the world. In 2025, Shell LiveWire trained more than 2,500 people, supporting over 790 existing and new businesses, creating more than 1,000 jobs, and sustaining more than 2,600 jobs.
About Louisiana Small Business Development Center (LSBDC)
The Louisiana Small Business Development Center Network (LSBDC) is a mission and performance-driven organization dedicated to delivering measurable results for small businesses across the state. For more than four decades, LSBDC has provided high-quality consulting, training, and technical assistance to support long-term business growth and sustainability. Established in 1983, LSBDC is the nation’s largest small business assistance network and an active member of America’s Small Business Development Association. Louisiana’s network comprises ten university-based regional centers that collectively serve more than 3,880 businesses, facilitate over $46 million in capital formation, help launch nearly 200 new businesses, create more than 738 jobs, and provide training to nearly 5,500 entrepreneurs.
Cautionary Note
The companies in which Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate legal entities. In this press release “Shell”, “Shell Group” and “Group” are sometimes used for convenience to reference Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words “we”, “us” and “our” are also used to refer to Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These terms are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular entity or entities. ”Subsidiaries”, “Shell subsidiaries” and “Shell companies” as used in this press release refer to entities over which Shell plc either directly or indirectly has control. The terms “joint venture”, “joint operations”, “joint arrangements”, and “associates” may also be used to refer to a commercial arrangement in which Shell has a direct or indirect ownership interest with one or more parties. The term “Shell interest” is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect ownership interest held by Shell in an entity or unincorporated joint arrangement, after exclusion of all third-party interest.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) concerning the financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Shell. All statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management’s current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Shell to market risks and statements expressing management’s expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as “aim”; “ambition”; ”anticipate”; “aspire”, “aspiration”, ”believe”; “commit”; “commitment”; ”could”; “desire”; ”estimate”; ”expect”; ”goals”; ”intend”; ”may”; “milestones”; ”objectives”; ”outlook”; ”plan”; ”probably”; ”project”; ”risks”; “schedule”; ”seek”; ”should”; ”target”; “vision”; ”will”; “would” and similar terms and phrases. There are a number of factors that could affect the future operations of Shell and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements included in this press release, including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for Shell’s products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserves estimates; (f) loss of market share and industry competition; (g) environmental and physical risks, including climate change; (h) risks associated with the identification of suitable potential acquisition properties and targets, and successful negotiation and completion of such transactions; (i) the risk of doing business in developing countries and countries subject to international sanctions; (j) legislative, judicial, fiscal and regulatory developments including tariffs and regulatory measures addressing climate change; (k) economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l) political risks, including the risks of expropriation and renegotiation of the terms of contracts with governmental entities, delays or advancements in the approval of projects and delays in the reimbursement for shared costs; (m) risks associated with the impact of pandemics, regional conflicts, such as the Russia-Ukraine war and the conflict in the Middle East, and a significant cyber security, data privacy or IT incident; (n) the pace of the energy transition; and (o) changes in trading conditions. No assurance is provided that future dividend payments will match or exceed previous dividend payments. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Additional risk factors that may affect future results are contained in Shell plc’s Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2025 (available at www.shell.com/investors/news-and-filings/sec-filings.html and www.sec.gov). These risk factors also expressly qualify all forward-looking statements contained in this press release and should be considered by the reader. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this release, April 21, 2026. Neither Shell plc nor any of its subsidiaries undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information. In light of these risks, results could differ materially from those stated, implied or inferred from the forward-looking statements contained in this release
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SOURCE Shell USA, Inc.
