Now we have further confirmation that Shell was trying to dodge a multimillion tax bill. This time confirmation comes from the findings of an investigation by the Coast Guard division of US Homeland Security. There are going to be more Royal Dutch Shell executives looking for alternative employment… And Marvin Odum, Shell’s boss in the USA, should be top of the list.
By John Donovan
After Shell’s Arctic ambitions hit the rocks at the end of December 2012, Shell initially conceded that the ill-fated Kulluk drilling rig had left port under tow to avoid taxes.
Shell then backtracked. Shell’s chief executive Peter Voser rejected accusations that tax issues were a factor in the move.
We subsequently had confirmation from one of the honest people at Shell, Sean Churchfield, its operations manager in Alaska, that the first admission was correct. The Kulluk had indeed left port in order to avoid “millions” in annual state taxes.