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Rossport Five

The retirement of Shell Exec Michael Crothers who covered up massive corruption on the Corrib Gas Project

Michael Crothers (CNW Group/Shell Canada Limited)

By John Donovan

Printed below is a press release announcing the retirement of Michael Crothers as Shell Canada Country Chair and the appointment of his successor, Susannah Pierce.

In August 2013, The Observer newspaper and Guardian Online published an article “Strange tale of Shell’s pipeline battle, the Gardaí and £30,000 of booze

On the instructions of Shell E&P Ireland, an Irish Company called OSSL distributed bribes to the Irish Police and other parties in an attempt to smooth the path of the highly controversial Corrib Gas Project in Ireland. 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.

Shell is experiencing an annus horribilis

Translation of an article published today by the Dutch FT, the FD Het Financieele Dagblad 2020)

Shell has to pay for its openness

Carel Grol

In Brief

  • All oil companies are hit by the low oil price.
  • Nevertheless, American companies perform better than European companies, with Shell as the largest descender.
  • One explanation is that Shell makes more predictions, and is therefore punished more harshly. American companies say less, so they can count on less.

Shell is experiencing an annus horribilis. The oil and gas company’s share price has halved this year. The oil price has suffered from the massive drop in demand due to corona and disagreement between Saudi Arabia and Russia over the reduction of oil production. Shell wrote off billions and cut the dividend for the first time since World War II. But remarkably, the American oil majors are doing much better in the exact same market. 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.

Judicial Review of consent to operate the Corrib Gas pipeline

Shell to Sea spokesperson Maura Harrington with Garda Officers

A Judicial Review of then Minister Alex White’s decision to grant consent to Shell, 29 December 2015, to operate the Corrib Gas pipeline begins in the High Court on Tuesday, 13 February. The hearing is scheduled to last for four days. Shell to Sea spokesperson Maura Harrington is the sole Applicant in the hearing and is representing herself as a lay litigant. The application is contested by the State as Respondents and Shell as Notice Party in the proceedings.

On 31 December 2015 there was an uncontrolled flaring event at the Corrib Gas installation which resulted in Shell being successfully prosecuted by the EPA.

This release is for information purposes only and Shell to Sea will not be making any further comment other than to quote from their press release following Minister White’s grant of consent where Ms Harrington is quoted as saying ‘The Judicial Review of Alex White’s decision should prove interesting’.

ENDS

http://www.shelltosea.com
http://www.facebook.com/shelltosea
http://twitter.com/#!/ShellToSea

The Shell to Sea Campaign has three main aims:
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.

End to Shell’s involvement in the most controversial infrastructure project in Ireland’s history

Protest event in Ireland during “Shell to Sea” campaign

Joe Brennan: 4 Sept 2017: Extracts from article: “Vayu warns of volatile prices for winter gas”

Ireland imports much of its gas needs through the UK, even though the Corrib field off the Mayo coast, which started production in late 2015, has the potential to meet up to 60 per cent of the country’s gas needs and is expected to supply fuel for up to 20 years. Discovered 21 years ago, the field was dogged by years of opposition before natural gas started flowing almost two years ago. FULL ARTICLE 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.

We warned Shell in 2005 that Corrib would turn into a PR disaster

By John Donovan

An article we published on 3rd July 2005 warned in relation to the Corrib Gas project in Ireland: “Do we spy another PR disaster on Shell’s horizon…”

I went on to warn:

..there appears to be all of the ingredients present for another Shell PR disaster…

At the 2005 Shell AGM, the then Chairman of Shell Transport and Trading Company Lord Oxburgh, was gung-ho about  jailing land owner opponents of the Corrib gas pipeline, who became known as the Rossport Five. 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.

More Shell News 13 July 2017

How Europe’s Monster Gas Field Turned Into a Monster Headache: Bloomberg: 13 July 2017

Judge to consider demands to close Europe’s largest gas field; Groningen has contributed almost 300 billion euros to budget; What was once a blessing is now an expensive curse; Officials are also considering criminal charges against NAM executives READ MORE

Corrib gas timeline: 20 years of protests and controversy: The Irish Times: 13 July 2017

June 2005 – High Court jails five men who became known as the “Rossport Five” for contempt of court over their continued protests over the pipeline route. READ MORE

Trump administration approves Eni plan to drill offshore Alaska: Reuters: 13 July 2017

Royal Dutch Shell Plc quit its exploration quest offshore Alaska in 2015 after a ship it had leased suffered a gash in mostly uncharted waters… READ MORE 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.

Irish Gas: Shell sells out and departs leaving a toxic legacy behind

Shell is gone and good riddance…

News Release – Issued by Shell to Sea – July 13th, 2017

It was announced yesterday that Shell is planning to sell its 45% stake of the Corrib Gas project to Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB).

Shell to Sea today claimed that Shell caused considerable damage to all State institutions involved in the Corrib Gas project since their involvement began in 2002.

Some examples of the damage done to these State institutions:

  • Two former Shell sub-contractors with OSSL, have sworn in court that they delivered £25,000 of alcohol in 2007 (and other amounts in previously) to Gardaí involved in policing Corrib Gas protests at the request of Shell.[1]
  • When Bord Pleanala turned down the initial planning application for Bellanaboy refinery, leaked minutes of a meeting of Shell Managing Directors indicate that Shell’s response was to query “whether the group had sufficiently well placed contacts with the Irish government and regulators.” . Subsequently Shell met with Bertie Ahern in September 2003 and within a week the Chairman of Bord Pleanala met with representatives of the 3 companies involved in Corrib Gas. An Bord Pleanala granted the subsequent refinery application. [2]
  • RTE were forced to issue an apology over a news report, after they attempted to create the impression that a recording of Gardaí joking about threatening to rape two women in their custody, had been “altered” or “tampered with” . Retired RTE producer Betty Purcell, who worked with RTE for 33 years has stated that it was her belief that Shell personnel appeared to have ‘automatic access’ to senior management in RTE. [3]
  • Despite the Corrib protests being the biggest single cause for compaints to the Garda Ombudsman no Garda has ever been punished that is known about. This lack of results on Garda misbehaviour has resulted in Shell to Sea previously calling for the disbandment of GSOC inorder to setup a proper Garda watchdog. In 2007, then Minister for Justice, Brian Lenihan also refused GSOC permission to do a “policies and practices” investigation into the policing of Corrib protests. [4]
  • In 2005, when jailing the Rossport 5, President of the High Court Judge Joseph Finnegan stated about a breach of a Shell injuction allowing access to Rossport residents’ land, “if ignored then society breaks down. If you insist then I can impose imprisonment and fines, for example hundreds of thousands of euro per day. I have no hesitation in having farms sold. If I have to send every farmer to jail, I will because I have made an order”. In comparison a Shell breach of a court injunction forbidding them from entering land in 2009 is still being processed by the courts.[5]

Commenting on the proposed Shell sale of Corrib, Shell to Sea spokesperson Maura Harrington stated “Shell is gone and good riddance but Shell to Sea remains and will continue the fight to protect the natural resources of Ireland from any future planned plunder” 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.

Contemptible Shell Says Irish Supreme Court

 

John Donovan

The link at the foot of this article is to a judgement released by the Irish Supreme Court earlier today.

It relates to the Shell led Corrib gas project in Ireland, beset by controversy from the outset, including bribery and corruption sponsored by Shell. 

Landowners from Rossport North County Mayo who objected to Shell’s land grab plans and put environmental considerations before personal reward, were jailed at the behest of Shell. They became known as the Rossport Five

One high-minded Rossport landowner, Monica Muller, launched a court action against Shell in October 2007 alleging that Shell had entered her land without her permission. 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.

€8.5 million Shell slush fund mishandled in Ireland

By John Donovan

The Irish edition of The Sunday Times has published an article reporting that an official audit by a local government auditor has criticised the basis on which a €8.5 million fund, provided by the benevolent energy giant Shell, was handled by Mayo County Council.

What is the appropriate description for such a huge sum lavished on a relatively tiny community in County Mayo? A bribe? A spectacularly generous gift? Hush money? Or compensation for being diddled out of their birthright? 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.

Many Irish names feature in Bahamas registry

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Extracts from an article by Colm Keena published by The Irish Times on 22 Sept 2016

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screen-shot-2016-09-23-at-21-22-23Shell E&P Ireland Offshore Inc associated with Corrib gas project

Two companies registered in the Bahamas and used by Dublin property investor Paul Fenelon for investments in the UK are among companies of Irish interest on the Corporate Registry of the Bahamas.

The registry, normally difficult to access, is being made publicly available by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), of which The Irish Times is a media partner.

Shell E & P Ireland Offshore Inc, a company with an address in Nassau, has had a number of Irish directors over the years, starting in 2000.  The company is associated with the Corrib gas project in Co Mayo. 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.

Shell delays North Sea Brent platform decommissioning to 2017

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By REUTERSPUBLISHED: 18:24, 4 July 2016

LONDON, July 4 (Reuters) – Anglo-Dutch oil major Royal Dutch Shell will start dismantling its nearly 40-year-old Brent Delta platform in the North Sea in 2017, a senior manager said, delaying the process by around one year.

Brent Delta, as tall as the Eiffel Tower, is the first of four Brent platforms to be decommissioned and one of the first large-scale projects to dismantle a depleted North Sea oil field.

The start of the complex work, which has been planned for 10 years, has been delayed to next year after it took longer than expected to equip the specialist vessel which will transport the 25,000-tonne topside of the platform to Hartlepool harbour where it will be taken apart. 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.

Shell to Sea activist Maura Harrington arrested in Mayo

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Friday 6 May 2016

SHELL TO SEA campaigner Maura Harrington has been arrested in Mayo and taken to Mountjoy Prison to serve time for an unpaid fine.

It is understood she was arrested this afternoon as she left a bank in Belmullet. She was taken to Belmullet garda station and then transported to the Dóchas Centre women’s prison at Mountjoy, where she is expected to spend ten days.

The activist was convicted last year in relation to the obstruction of a tunnel-boring machine at the Shell plant in Ballinaboy. A monetary penalty of €300 was imposed as part of her sentence, but she has refused to pay it. 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.

Ruairí McKiernan: Corrib gas protesters did State some service

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…many of those involved have been ridiculed, slandered, spied on, harassed, beaten and jailed – all for upholding their democratic right to peaceful dissent. Incidents included the 2005 jailing of the Rossport Five, who spent 94 days in prison at the behest of Shell.

Ruairí McKiernan

As gas is flared into the skies above north Mayo, it is worth reflecting on a project that has been one of modern Ireland’s greatest scandals, a stunning fiasco in planning, economics, environmental protection and the abuse of civil liberties.

Far from it being just about energy supply, jobs and development, the Corrib gas project cuts to the core of this republic and asks big questions about how the country is run.

For more than 10 years now, campaigners have attempted to highlight the project’s many flaws. 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.

Natural gas begins flowing from controversial Corrib field

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Peter Murtagh: 30 Dec 2015

Natural gas is flowing into the national supply grid from the Corrib gas field off Co Mayo for the first time since it was discovered in 1996.

One of six wellheads, drilled in 350m of water 84km off the west coast, was opened on Wednesday by the field developer, Shell E&P Ireland.

This started gas flowing through a 20 inch diameter off-shore pipeline to an 8.3km-long on-shore pipeline, which includes a 4.9km tunnel beneath Sruwaddacon Bay, the longest in Ireland.

It continues from there into the company’s reception terminal at Ballanaboy, near Belmullet in Co Mayo. 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.

Shell seeks permission to operate Corrib gas pipeline

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by Joe Leogue: Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Shell Ireland has officially applied to the Government for permission to operate the controversial pipeline from the Corrib gas field off the coast of Mayo.

The application is the first to be made under the Gas Act since the completion of its construction.

The pipeline is a joint venture by the Corrib Gas Partners which comprises Shell E&P Ireland Limited, Statoil, and Vermillion.

The application was sent to Minister for Communications, Energy, and Natural Resources Alex White on Tuesday, August 18. 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 Corrib legacy: what the protests achieved

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Screen Shot 2015-06-11 at 19.31.15The Corrib legacy: what the protests achieved

A rerouting of the pipeline and greater public awareness of how Ireland treats its natural resources were among the positive outcomes of the Shell to Sea, campaigners say

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Bríd McGarry, a Mayo landowner, and Mary Corduff, wife of jailed farmer Willie Corduff, after five Mayo farmers were jailed in 2005 for refusing to give an undertaking not to obstruct the construction of the Corrib gas pipe line. Photograph: Alan Betson/The Irish Times

Lorna Siggins: Monday June 29, 2015

“You’ve gone very quiet up there.” North Mayo resident Mary Corduff reckons that if she had a euro for every time she heard this remark over the past few months, her purse could be pretty full. “People think because they don’t see us on protesting on the television that we have accepted this, but we haven’t,” Corduff says, looking out of her farmhouse window towards the Corrib gas refinery several miles away. 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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