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Shell M&A Chief Resigns After Push to Acquire BP Is Blocked by CEO

By John Donovan

In a significant development at one of the world’s largest energy firms, Shell’s head of mergers and acquisitions, Greg Gut, has resigned following internal opposition to a proposal to take over rival oil major BP. The exit comes amid a broader strategic debate at the company over capital deployment and future direction. 

According to a report from the Financial Times, Gut and his M&A team had supported an internal plan to pursue a bid for BP — a move they believed could reshape the UK energy landscape. Shell’s chair, Sir Andrew Mackenzie, was reportedly open to the idea. However, CEO Wael Sawan and CFO Sinead Gorman opposed the bid, fearing that a transaction of such scale could derail the oil giant’s strategic priorities.  read more

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

SHELL’S CASUALTIES AND THE INVESTMENT FUNDS THAT PAY FOR THEM

THE WAGES OF SIN: A CHRONICLE OF SHELL’S CASUALTIES AND THE INVESTMENT FUNDS THAT PAY FOR THEM

It is a grand, old-world notion that a corporation can possess a soul, or rather, that the absence of one can be measured by its balance sheet. If that is the case, then Shell is less a corporation and more a meticulously catalogued exhibit in the museum of moral bankruptcy—the ultimate sin stock. Its history is not merely a record of drilling and profit but a chilling, chronological catalogue of calculated risks taken with other people’s lives: its employees, its customers, and the communities unfortunate enough to share a postcode with its extraction sites. read more

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

From Documentary to Courtroom Showdown: When Shell plc’s Sin Stock Moment Meets the Lens of Justice

By John Donovan & AI (yes, both of us — and we’re still deciding whose turn it was to fetch the popcorn)

Opening Scene

In a world where oil-giants strut in glossy annual reports while the real cost of fossil exploitation remains buried beneath toxic sludge and courtroom delays, enters one woman: Esther Kiobel. Her life, her loss and her relentless pursuit of a corporation turn into the film Esther & the Law: The Case Against Shell. The documentary chronicles her challenge to Shell in the Netherlands — nearly thirty years after the execution of her husband — and by extension, shines a light on how Shell turned into the ultimate “sin stock”. read more

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

Shell plc: Big Oil’s Legacy on Trial — When ‘Sin Stock’ Meets Niger Delta Reality”

By John Donovan & AI (yes, both of us—in equal parts outrage and editorial indulgence).

So here we are. Vast fields of oil. Devastated swamps. Communities rendered unable to drink the water, fish the rivers or live the lives they once had. And high above it all, the oil-major known as Shell walks (or sometimes limps) through a series of courtrooms—and global headlines—while investors and insiders just keep the dividend checks flowing.

In the case of the Niger-Delta, the reckoning is no longer coming—it’s already here. read more

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

THE MOST DAMAGING ARTICLE ABOUT SHELL EVER PUBLISHED?

“A persistent reputational risk.” — Shell internal memo, 2007

In the oil-stained annals of corporate history, few duels have burned as long — or as publicly — as that between Royal Dutch Shell and a retired British marketing man named John Donovan.

What began in the 1990s as a routine commercial dispute between Shell and Donovan’s family business, Don Marketing, would metastasize into one of the most sustained reputational headaches any multinational has ever faced.

Three decades later, Donovan’s website — RoyalDutchShellPLC.com — functions like a digital conscience for a company trying to forget its own. It is a trove of Shell’s internal embarrassments: whistleblower leaks, courtroom revelations, safety scandals, and corporate PR hypocrisy, preserved with forensic precision. read more

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

Shell vs Donovan: Oil Giant vs Watchdog

How one man’s persistence exposed decades of corporate deceit — and forced an oil giant to live with its reflection.

Part 1: The Origins of a Corporate Nemesis

“There are two types of corporations: those that fear whistleblowers and those that wish they’d hired one.” — Industry proverb

In the late 1980s, John Donovan was not yet a thorn in Shell’s side. He was one of its trusted collaborators — a marketing innovator whose company, Don Marketing, created hugely successful sales promotions for Shell in the UK and around the globe.

But what began as a partnership ended in betrayal. A bitter dispute over intellectual property, allegedly stolen concepts, and corporate bullying gave birth to a feud that would last decades. read more

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

Bonga Bonanza: Shell Grabs a Bigger Slice of Nigeria’s Deep-Water Pie—And the Liabilities Too

What just happened (and why Shell’s grinning)

Nigeria’s oil regulator has approved a $510 million deal for TotalEnergies to sell its entire 12.5% stake in OML 118 (home of the Bonga deep-water field) to Shell and Agip. Total will offload 10% to Shell for $408m and 2.5% to Agip for $102m. Result: Shell’s stake rises to 67.5%, doubling down on offshore Nigeria after dumping its messy onshore assets to Renaissance. The regulator’s exact words:

SNEPco and NAE have demonstrated both technical and managerial competence to optimally contribute to the upstream operations in OML 118.”  read more

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

Saint, Sinner… or Just Rich? Shell parks $40B of pensions with Goldman while the past keeps knocking

Shell—the greedy, ruthless, polluting oil giant and perennial sin stock—has found a fresh halo to borrow: a $40 billion outsourced pension mandate with Wall Street royalty. As Bloomberg reported, “Goldman Sachs Group Inc. won a $40 billion mandate from Shell Plc to oversee pension assets for the energy company, in one of the biggest outsourced deals of its kind.” That’s not satire; that’s the lede. Bloomberg. 

Goldman’s own one-minute victory lap says the quiet bit proudly: “The appointments mark one of the largest multi-national OCIO mandates awarded to date.” GSAM press page.  read more

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

Purple Pump, Black Ledger: Shell’s Charity PR Meets Its Dirty Past

Shell — the greedy, ruthless, polluting oil giant and perennial sin stock — is back with its annual feel-good campaign: The Giving Pump. You fill up at a purple pump; money goes to local charities; everyone smiles for Instagram. Shell’s own press release beams: “The Giving Pump goes to show how small choices—like where you fuel up—can add up to meaningful change,” says Barbara Stoyko, SVP for Mobility & Convenience Americas. “The Giving Pump works so well because of our generous retailers. They are the ones selecting the charities benefitted by our purple pumps because they know the causes that matter most to the customers in their communities.” And St. Jude’s ALSAC chimes in: “We are grateful for our friends at Shell… Every small act of kindness… helps St. Jude advance scientific research and treatment…” Lovely words, quoted verbatim from Shell’s 9 Sept 2025 release. Read the release.  read more

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

Deep pockets, deeper waters: Shell’s five-well fling off South Africa meets a wall of salt, science, and small-boat fury

Shell promises ‘energy security’; communities promise court dates.

Shell—the greedy, ruthless, polluting oil giant and perennial sin stock—has a fresh plan to poke holes in the planet: up to five deep-water wells off South Africa’s west coast. Civil society groups and coastal communities have answered with a formal appeal, because someone has to bring a bucket when the world’s richest arsonist shows up with matches.

What Shell just got — and why people are furious

As Reuters reported, “Shell (SHEL.L) has been granted environmental authorisation to drill up to five deep-water wells off South Africa’s west coast, the company said on Friday.” Shell added: “Should viable resources be found offshore, this could significantly contribute to South Africa’s energy security and the government’s economic development programmes.” (Reuters) 

The authorisation covers the Northern Cape Ultra-Deep (NCUD) block, between Port Nolloth and Lamberts Bay, in the Orange Basin—water depths of roughly 2,500–3,200 metres. (Reuters) (Appeal PDF)  read more

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

Shell, Spies and the Church: Public Enemy Number 1 in the Pews of Power

UPDATED 6 Sept 2025

When oil, espionage, and institutional sanctity collide, you get more than corporate intrigue—you get disaster dressed as business. This isn’t a Bond novel. This is Shell—deploying spies, dodging accountability, and leaving death and pollution in its wake. And Amnesty International reminds us: Shell can divest, but it can’t wash away its crimes.

1.

The Church, the Fax, and Hakluyt’s Grip

In 2004, a letter Shell critic Alfred Donovan faxed to Hakluyt & Companyco-founder Christopher James (a private intelligence firm founded by MI6 veterans) mysteriously turned up on the desk of a surprised lawyer at the Church of England’s Legal Office. read more

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

Shell: The Greedy, Polluting Sin Stock That Spies on Activists While Drowning the Planet in Profit

Let’s get this straight: Shell—the oil Goliath with a BlackRock thumbprint, a penchant for espionage, and an endless appetite for green devastation—is not just a fossil fuel baron, it’s a masterclass in corporate ethical bankruptcy.

1. Spying on the Good Guys: Hakluyt, MI6—and Yourself

Brace yourself. Shell quietly engaged Hakluyt & Company—a spy firm founded by ex-MI6 officers—to infiltrate and target Greenpeace campaigns. According to investigative journalists, “two oil companies hired a private espionage service… to infiltrate Greenpeace, Germany”  Hakluyt may deny ties now, but the firm “still schmoozes Shell, BP & the British Establishment”  . Translation? Shell didn’t just fuel climate denial—they employed espionage to squash activism. read more

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

Shell: Public Enemy Number 1 – A Love Letter to Greed, Lies, and Pollution

If evil needed a mascot, it would look suspiciously like a giant yellow shell. Forget SPECTRE and SMERSH—those were fiction. Shell’s record of villainy is all too real.

This is the story of an oil giant who funded Nazis, tested carcinogens on their own employees, and still have the gall to tell you they care about “net zero.”

From the Third Reich to Today: Same Script, Different Lies

Shell’s rap sheet starts early: during WWII, Shell effectively sacrificed its own Dutch employees to maintain ties with Nazi Germany, prioritising profits over human lives. Fast-forward a few decades and the playbook hasn’t changed—they’re still perfectly happy to gamble with lives, only now it’s under the glossy cover of corporate social responsibility. read more

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

Shell & BP: The Sin Stocks That Even SPECTRE Would Blush At

By Editorial Team | Generated with AI assistance and reviewed by an editor: 22 JULY 2025

Move over Blofeld, step aside SMERSH – the real villains of our age wear corporate logos, not eye patches.

Shell and BP, those beloved darlings of Wall Street and favourite investments of titans like BlackRock and Vanguard, have once again proven that when it comes to greed, ruthlessness, and planetary destruction, fiction can’t compete with reality.

Let’s start with Shell – the oil behemoth that markets itself as a climate-conscious “energy transition leader” while simultaneously stomping on anything resembling ethics or sustainability. These paragons of corporate virtue just pulled out of a six-year attempt to define a net-zero emissions standard, according to the Financial Times (22 July, Reuters). Why? Because the draft standard dared suggest companies should stop developing new oil and gas fields. The horror! read more

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

Nigeria pardons activist Ken Saro-Wiwa 30 years after execution

Nigeria pardons activist Ken Saro-Wiwa 30 years after execution

Wedaeli Chibelushi BBC News 13 June 202

Nigeria’s president has pardoned the late activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, 30 years after his execution sparked global outrage.

Along with eight other campaigners, Mr Saro-Wiwa was convicted of murder, then hanged in 1995 by the then-military regime.

Many believed the activists were being punished for leading protests against the operations of oil multinationals, particularly Shell, in Nigeria’s Ogoniland. Shell has long denied any involvement in the executions.

Though the pardons have been welcomed, some activists and relatives say they do not go far enough. read more

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

How Shell Showed Contempt for the Planet – and Got Tax Breaks for It

Behold the Shell Pennsylvania Petrochemicals Complex: a billion-dollar plastic-spewing behemoth where climate pledges come to die, and carcinogens go to party. Nestled in the rolling green of Potter Township, this petrochemical monster—cheerily dubbed “Shell Polymers Monaca”—is Shell’s love letter to deregulation, tax holidays, and fossil-fueled hypocrisy.

Built with the subtlety of a Bond villain lair and $1.65 billion in public subsidies (yes, you read that right), the plant turns fracked gas from the Marcellus Shale into over a million tons of plastic pellets per year. Because when Shell talks about “the energy transition,” what they really mean is transitioning the planet into a floating garbage patch. read more

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