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September, 2015:

Why we MUST drill for oil in the Arctic: Shell boss’s message to climate change campaigners and governments

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By JON REES, FINANCIAL MAIL ON SUNDAY: 20 Sept 2015

Some green campaigners seem to believe Shell boss Ben van Beurden would be happy dunking polar bears in thick, black crude oil if it helped make the planet even hotter.

But van Beurden, the 57-year-old engineer who has run Royal Dutch Shell for nearly two years and has given the company the green light to drill in Arctic waters, believes his view of the world’s future is considerably more honest than that of many environmentalists.

‘The amount of energy we consume is going to double in the first half of the century so we will have to supply twice as much as we do today as an industry. Most renewables produce electricity, and electricity is just 20 per cent of the energy mix. Where is the other 80 per cent going to come from?’ says the Dutchman. 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’s dividend gusher can survive a prolonged siege

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If the oil price stays low, Shell’s van Beurden may have to eat his words Photo: AFP

Sunday Telegraph: Jeremy Warner: 20 Sep 2015

Ben van Beurden, chief executive of Royal Dutch Shell, is on a charm offensive to convince investors – and the press – that both the dividend is safe and the pending £45bn takeover of BG Group will proceed as planned. These promises attempt to address what is in essence the same underlying worry – the low oil price and its prospects for recovery.

In each case, the markets are plainly sceptical. Shares in Shell are on a barely believable yield of more than 7 per cent, indicating a high probability of a dividend cut to come, while BG shares trade on a discount of more than 10 per cent to the see through value of Shell’s offer. 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/Exxon NAM JV cuts 2000 jobs due to low oil price and liability for Dutch earthquakes

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Screen Shot 2015-09-02 at 14.32.29“Thousands of buildings have been damaged in earthquakes caused by the ground settling after the gas has been removed. ‘NAM has continued to drill in Groningen even though it is well aware of the risks, and has put dozens of lives in danger…”

By John Donovan: Saturday 19 Sept 2015

A spokesperson for the Dutch Petroleum Company (NAM) – a joint venture between Royal Dutch Shell and ExxonMobil – confirmed earlier today that the Company is cutting 2,000 jobs.

The downsizing results from the collapse in oil and gas prices and concern over massive multi-billion dollar liability arising from the NAM induced earthquakes in Holland arising from gas extraction at the Groningen field. 

RELATED

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Top lawyer takes on NAM over Groningen quake dangers

High profile lawyer Gerard Spong has made a formal complaint against gas extraction company NAM, saying he holds it responsible for deliberately damaging houses and other property in Groningen province. 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 completes Corrib as partner confirms €243m loss

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Shell Ireland has declared that the on-site work is now complete for the gas to flow from the Corrib Gas field.

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Some of the more than 900 employees pictured during construction of the Corrib Gas Processing Terminal at Bellanaboy.

Irish Independent: By Gordon Deegan: Saturday 19 Sept 2015

Shell Ireland yesterday declared that on-site work is complete for gas to flow from the Corrib gas field.

Shell E&P Ireland confirmed that from a technical point of view, production of gas can now start – 19 years after gas was discovered in the gas field off the coast of Mayo.

However, the Corrib Gas Partners cannot commence production until two separate permits are granted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Dept of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources. 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.

Iran to allow construction of 100 Total and Shell gas stations

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18 Sept 2015

Total and Shell have been given the green light to build 100 gas stations across Iran in the near future, after approval by government officials. This will be the first time foreign branded gas stations will operate in the country.

The 100 gas stations, which also received the approval from Bijan Haj Mohammad Reza, the chairman of the trade union of Iran’s filling station, will spread across different Iranian regions, according to Iranian news website Oilnews.

“For the first time Iran’s Petroleum Ministry will give permission for the construction of gasoline stations under any brand in the country,” he said. 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.

IF SHELL FINDS OIL IN CHUKCHI SEA, WHAT NEXT?

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Screen Shot 2015-06-13 at 09.26.5318 September 2015

The short drilling season for oil exploration in U.S. Arctic offshore waters will reach one stopping point Sept. 28 and a complete halt Oct. 31 for Royal Dutch Shell Plc. The company has been drilling since July 30 at the Burger prospect in the Chukchi Sea north of Alaska. If oil is discovered, it will require some very interesting and complicated development decisions and regulatory considerations.

Shell has come a long way to get this far. It acquired a set of leases over the Burger prospect in 2008 and has spent about $7 billion on trying to develop the leases. Shell, operating through its subsidiary Shell Gulf of Mexico Inc., did not report a discovery from the well it drilled in 2012, and no one has ever yet discovered oil in the Chukchi — not oil in commercial quantities, at any rate. A dry hole is always a possibility. 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.

Actors join campaign to draw attention to Arctic issue

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Screen Shot 2015-08-29 at 23.17.56By DAN JOLING: 18 Sept 2015

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Critics of Arctic offshore petroleum drilling have used climbing gear, kayaks and polar bear costumes to protest industrial activity in the Arctic. They’re now trying humor.

Actors Alexander Skarsgard of “True Blood” and Jack McBrayer of “30 Rock,” along with Andy Bichlbaum of “The Yes Men” activists, are on a Greenpeace ship in the Greenland Sea with a team from the Funny or Die production company to make a comedy series focused on industrial threats to the Arctic. 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.

When Shell senior management had a collective mental health crisis

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Screen Shot 2015-09-18 at 16.30.33As New-Age Style Came In,
Geology Skills Lost Out;
Imitating Jerry Springer Oilmen at a Rainy Playground

By CHIP CUMMINS and ALMAR LATOUR
Staff Reporters of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: November 2, 2004

In late 2000, the head of the Dutch exploration unit at Royal Dutch/Shell Group asked his planners to deliver five-minute skits pitching ideas for discovering oil and gas.

In one skit, a naked employee ran on stage to catch the boss’s attention, say two people who attended. Another featured a mock episode of the Jerry Springer show, the incendiary daytime TV talk program. A third, after a bit of fun and games, promised to extract large quantities of natural gas cheaply from seemingly declining Dutch fields.

Long known for its sober geological expertise and conservative image, the Anglo-Dutch energy giant in the 1990s embraced New Age management. At other meetings, managers were told to shake their arms up and down in “energizer” exercises or stare into the eyes of colleagues while confiding their innermost thoughts, say attendees.

This cultural revolution ultimately led Shell into one of the worst crises in its history as the company turned to accounting maneuvers to hide its failures in finding energy. This year it admitted that it dramatically overstated its oil and gas 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.

Shell Handed A Get-Out-Jail Card As Its $70 Billion Bid For BG Hits An Obstacle

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Tim Treadgold, CONTRIBUTOR

Shareholders in Royal Dutch Shell ngIf: ticker will be uncertain whether they should thank, or criticize, the Australian Government’s competition regulator for threatening the proposed $70 billion merger with rival oil and gas producer, BG Group ngIf: ticker .

On one hand, a deal which could transform Shell is being threatened. On the other hand, missing out on BG could be the best result for Shell.

The problem is that BG’s primary appeal to Shell is that the target, once known as British Gas, is heavily exposed to liquefied natural gas (LNG), a fuel moving into a period of significant over-supply and potentially lower prices, at least in the short term. 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.

EU Said to Ramp Up Oil-Benchmarks Probe With Evidence Request

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Regulators may be moving toward sending antitrust complaint

Probe began two years ago with raids on BP, Shell and Statoil

By Gaspard Sebag and Javier Blas: BLOOMBERG.COM: 17 Sept 2015

Major oil companies including Royal Dutch Shell Plc and price publisher Platts were told by regulators to redact business secrets from documents obtained during antitrust raids in a sign the European Union may be moving ahead with a two-year-old probe, according to four people familiar with the investigation.

The redaction request could be a precursor to the European Commission sending a formal complaint, or statement of objections, to some of the firms, said the people who asked not to be named because the investigation into fuel-benchmark rigging isn’t public. 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.

Update: U.S. Dept. of Defense Confirms NCIS Espionage Investigation of Shell

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Screen Shot 2015-09-17 at 07.55.40By John Donovan

In 2010, I published an article revealing that four years earlier, U.S. authorities had launched an investigation into alleged industrial espionage by Shell Oil Company.

I contacted Shell at the time, but the then Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer for the company refused to comment.

A related court case is currently underway. A link is provided to documents filed today IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Case 1:14-cv-02139-KBJ. Shell is not currently involved. 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.

Optimism & Outrage: Shell’s $7 Billion Arctic Oil Gamble

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Screen Shot 2015-09-01 at 23.33.36by CYNTHIA MCFADDEN and JAKE WHITMAN: SEP 17 2015

At Royal Dutch Shell’s operations center in Anchorage, the cries of outrage that greeted the start of offshore drilling in the Arctic are drowned out by optimism.

The energy giant’s president, Marvin Odum, told NBC News that he’s confident that the $7 billion already spent to find oil under the sea — a bet that no other company is making in the American Arctic — was the right business decision.

And he says he’s also certain that Shell can handle any accident that might unfold during exploration or extraction, which wouldn’t even happen until 2030. 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 CEO: Alaska drilling efforts could end after this season

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Screen Shot 2015-09-17 at 22.47.40September 17, 2015

If Shell’s Chukchi Sea drilling operations manage to penetrate underground rock formations in waters off Alaska’s north coast this season and don’t find oil, that could be the end of the company’s controversial Arctic efforts, according to a report from the BBC.

“Our plan for the Arctic is to find out whether there is any oil in the Chukchi Sea,” Shell CEO Ben van Beurden told the British news outlet.

“We are in the middle of that drilling campaign and we have to see at the end of the season whether we get into the reservoir. If these results are conclusively no, then it will probably be the end of the road for our Alaska adventure.” 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.

Australia throws spanner in the works for Shell’s takeover of BG Group

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by Sarah Spickernell

Royal Dutch Shell’s takeover of rival BG Group has been postponed, after Australian regulators voiced concerns about the potential impact on domestic gas supplies.  

In a statement today, Rod Sims, chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), claimed the deal was not in the best interests of Australian consumers, as it might result in a greater proportion of east coast supplies being exported.  

He said: 

If the proposed acquisition resulted in less supply of gas to the domestic market, therefore, this could substantially lessen competition to supply domestic gas users and lead to higher domestic prices and more restrictive contractual terms. 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 will not sanction Arctic exploration until at least 2020

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Screen Shot 2015-09-17 at 07.55.40Kamal AhmedBusiness editor: 17 Sept 2015

As it moves, gingerly, through the first stages of exploration 70 miles off the Alaskan coast, Royal Dutch Shell has revealed its commitment to drilling in the Arctic.

And how long it will be before any oil or gas actually comes out of the ground – if at all.

Despite environmental concerns and the low oil price, Ben van Beurden, Shell’s chief executive, told me that as the world’s energy demands increased, the hunt for new resources was as important as ever.

The Arctic, he points out, has long been a source of oil and gas production. Environmental safety would be the priority, he insisted. 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.

Australia delays decision on Shell bid for BG on gas supply concerns

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Commodities | Thu Sep 17, 2015 

* Regulator raises domestic gas supply, price concerns

* ACCC to issue final decision on Nov. 12

* Shell says still expects to complete deal in Q1 2016 

By Sonali Paul

MELBOURNE, Sept 17 (Reuters) – Australia’s competition watchdog flagged concerns on Thursday that Royal Dutch Shell’s proposed $70 billion takeover of BG Group may lessen gas supply competition in eastern Australia and delayed a final decision on the bid to November.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said a large number of market participants had expressed concerns that the proposed takeover may lead Shell’s Arrow Energy to sell its gas into BG’s Queensland Curtis liquefied natural gas plant (QCLNG) for export. 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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