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October 15th, 2007:

Forbes: Oil Hits Record High

Vidya Ram, 10.15.07, 1:55 PM ET

LONDON – Concerns about crude inventory levels in the U.S. and escalating tensions between Turkey and Iraq drove oil prices to an all-time high Monday.

The price of sweet crude oil for November delivery in New York rose to $85.39 a barrel in afternoon trading. It is the first time a barrel has passed $85. On Friday, oil closed at a record $83.69 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Last week oil prices, which have remained above $80 since the start of September, set new records, amid concerns that falling crude inventories in the United States could mean that there were insufficient supplies for the winter period. Threats from Turkey to invade northern Iraq to deal with rebels in the north of the country have also kept prices strong. As the area close to major crude oil pipelines, any conflict in the region could disrupt oil supplies form Iraq, which holds the world’s third-largest oil reserves. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

energycurrent.com: Shell commences Perdido on-site work

Filed from Houston

10/15/2007 7:48:20 PM GMT
 
USA/GULF OF MEXICO:  On-site work has started at the Shell-operated Perdido development in the Alaminos Canyon area of the Gulf of Mexico. 

Noble Drilling semi Noble Clyde Boudreaux, which completed refurbishment in Mississippi before traveling 580 miles (933 km) to the Perdido site, will drill a 20-well batch set, pre-drilling the wells.  After the regional direct vertical access spar arrives, Shell will finish drilling the wells, complete them and commence production.  Once moored on Alaminos Canyon Block 857, the spar will be the deepest spar production facility in the world in about 8,000 feet (2,438 m) of water.  The facility will be capable of processing 130,000 BOE/d.  First production from Perdido is expected around the turn of the decade. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

International Herald Tribune: OPEC raises forecast for oil demand

By Carter Dougherty Published: October 15, 2007

FRANKFURT: The price of a barrel of oil crashed through $85 on Monday for the first time as leading oil exporters said it was increasingly likely that the United States would dodge a recession – ensuring that U.S. demand would help keep the cost of crude high.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries raised its forecast for oil demand during the coming winter in the northern hemisphere. It predicted in its monthly oil market report that demand would hit 31.4 million barrels a day in the fourth quarter, up 100,000 barrels from a previous estimate, and rise early next year as well. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Deadly concerns remain over Shell employee safety

By John Donovan

Who would have thought it possible that in this day and age one of the world’s biggest multinational corporations – Royal Dutch Shell Plc – could still get away with putting profits before the safety of its workers?

Despite the fact that recent Health & Safety sins have caught up with Shell, statistics show that its atrocious safety record is getting worse, not better.

PAST SINS ARISING FROM A MANAGEMENT ENDORSED “TOUCH FUCK ALL” SAFETY CULTURE IN EP EUROPE

THE BRENT BRAVO SCANDAL: In 1999, a specialist team led by an expert, Bill Campbell, carried out a safety audit on the Shell Brent Bravo platform. The audit revealed a deeply flawed management culture in which safety records were falsified and production was given a higher priority than the safety of Shell employees. Campbell claims he was subsequently removed from his oversight role because he continued to ring alarm bells about a failure to rectify the safety short-cuts his audit had exposed. This included a scandalous “Touch Fuck All” policy tacitly endorsed by a Shell EP executive, Malcolm Brinded, who failed to act.  Brinded turned a blind eye to Campbell’s warnings and two Shell workers paid with their lives in a subsequent huge release of gas in 2003.  Shell was fined £900,000 by the Scottish authorities for admitted breaches of Health & Safety regulations which resulted in the avoidable deaths. Although the fine was record breaking, the amount was insignificant compared to the multi-billion dollar quarterly profits Shell regularly makes. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

gulf-times.com: US oil refinery expansions may hit Europe

Gulf-Times image Shell Refinery 

The Shell Oil Deer Park Refinery in Texas. The new refinery investments are likely to be triggered by Royal Dutch Shell’s decision last month to expand its Port Arthur plant in Texas

Published: Monday, 15 October, 2007, 01:49 AM Doha Time  

LONDON: An expected wave of expansions at US refineries could reduce demand for fuel imports from Europe, which supplies a tenth of US gasoline, traders and analysts say.

The new investments are likely to be triggered by Royal Dutch Shell’s decision last month to expand its Port Arthur plant in Texas, a project the company described as equivalent to building a new refinery, the first to be built in the US for 30 years. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

The Calgary Herald: New fund will track gas

Herald News Services
Published: Monday, October 15, 2007

Natural Gas – Auspice Capital Management, a hedge fund firm started by former Royal Dutch Shell Plc energy traders Tim Pickering and Ken Corner, will start an exchange traded fund that tracks North American natural gas prices, SparkSpread reported, citing the fund’s documents.

Auspice is starting the exchange traded fund with Claymore Securities Inc. The Claymore Natural Gas Commodity ETF will track natural gas prices in Alberta, the energy news website said Friday, citing documents filed to the Toronto Stock Exchange. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Bloomberg: PetroChina Crude Oil Output Rises, Outpacing Shell, Chevron

By Ying Lou

Oct. 15 (Bloomberg) — PetroChina Co., the nation’s biggest oil company, increased oil and gas output 5.6 percent, outpacing production growth at Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Chevron Corp.

Oil and gas production in the third-quarter climbed to the equivalent of 275.4 million barrels (about 3 million barrels a day), the Beijing-based company said in a statement on its Web site. Crude output rose 2.6 percent and gas production gained 17 percent from July to September.

PetroChina will outspend Exxon Mobil Corp., Shell and BP Plc this year to expand supplies to the world’s fastest-growing major economy. A government-backed drive to acquire overseas energy assets and open domestic fields for exploration has enabled Chinese companies to pump more oil and gas as production at their rivals falters. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Vanguard: Shell shops for new MD, Nigeria

By Hector Igbikiowubo
Posted to the Web: Monday, October 15, 2007

LAGOS — IN what appears to be a culmination of frustrations with production shut-ins in the Niger Delta area, dwindling fortunes and high level intrigues within top management of its Nigeria operations, the Anglo-Dutch oil giant, Shell, has commenced search for a new Managing Director for its operations in the country.

It was also reliably gathered that a decision may have been taken to fuse some of its upstream companies in the country such as Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) and Shell Nigeria Ultra-Deep (SNUD) into one to benefit from economies of scale. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

UpstreamOnline: Shell talks on safety with HSE

4 October 2007

TOP level talks between the UK’s Health&Safety Executive (HSE) and Shell were due to be held this week to answer union complaints over safety issues, writes Christopher Hopson.

The HSE told Upstream that, after concerns raised by the unions, its officials had visited Shell’s Cormorant Alpha platform on 27 September to investigate.

An HSE spokesman said: “We are due to advise Shell of our initial findings on the afternoon of 3 October.”

The safety watchdog said its initial findings were fed back to the management and workforce at a joint offshore meeting on 28 September. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellgroup.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.
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