In a move that has left the entire public relations industry gasping for air (and possibly a stiff drink), Shell has once again turned to the wizards of spin at MSQ Partners. The London-based group, which joined Shell’s global agency roster back in 2022 and has been gamely polishing the oil major’s image ever since, now faces what industry insiders are calling “the Mount Everest of reputation management – if Everest were made of crude oil, blood, and decades of awkward court documents.”
Corrib Gas Project
Shell Hires MSQ: The PR Firm That Promised the Impossible – “Make Us Look Nice, or at Least Not Actively Evil”
Books About Shell
Books About Shell: An Expanded Bibliography
Introduction
Royal Dutch Shell, now Shell plc, has generated an unusually large body of literature stretching from official corporate histories and executive memoirs to academic studies, environmental investigations, human-rights accounts and books written by people directly involved in disputes with the company.
The bibliography below includes:
- histories commissioned or published by Shell;
- independent corporate histories;
- biographies of important Shell figures;
- books about particular Shell businesses and projects;
- books concerning Nigeria, Ogoni and Ken Saro-Wiwa;
- books about Brent Spar and Corrib;
- studies of Shell’s celebrated scenario-planning system;
- broader histories of the international oil industry in which Shell is a significant subject;
- and Amazon Kindle books by John Donovan concerning his long-running relationship with Shell.
The descriptions below are original summaries rather than reproductions of publishers’ copyrighted descriptions.
Early Royal Dutch and Shell Histories
1934
An International Oil Man
Author: Sir Henri Deterding, as told to Stanley Naylor
Format: Print
johndonovan.website: A Text-Only Archive for Search Engines, AI Research and the Donovan/Shell Historical Record
For archival, research and search purposes, I have transferred the textual content of JohnDonovan.website to this dedicated page on RoyalDutchShellPlc.com. The material is presented without the original images and other visual elements, creating a text-focused version that should be easier for conventional search engines, AI-powered research systems and other indexing tools to crawl, process, index and cross-reference with the extensive Donovan/Shell archive already published on this website.
The purpose is preservation and accessibility. JohnDonovan.website contains a substantial amount of historical information about my dealings with Shell, Don Marketing, the litigation between the Donovans and Shell, subsequent campaigning and publishing activities, and the origins and development of the various Shell-related websites. Bringing the text into RoyalDutchShellPlc.com places that material alongside the much larger documentary archive to which it relates.
THE GAS THAT WON’T STAY BURIED: Shell’s Groningen Comeback Tour Begins—Despite Earthquakes, Lawsuits and Public Fury
They promised closure. They promised safety. Now, as tremors still rattle homes, Shell and Exxon’s joint venture quietly prepares to turn the taps back on—because nothing says “lessons learned” like drilling again. Claims include hundreds of millions of euros for earthquake damage and falling house prices.
🏚️ FROM “NEVER AGAIN” TO “JUST ONE MORE WELL”
Just when Groningen thought the nightmare was finally over, Big Oil has other ideas.
In a move that has stunned—but not exactly surprised—locals, Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij (NAM) is preparing to restart gas extraction near Warffum, despite fierce opposition and years of earthquake trauma.
Yes, that Groningen.
The same region where decades of gas drilling—courtesy of Shell and ExxonMobil’s joint venture—left homes cracked, communities shaken, and trust shattered.
And now?
They’re back.
Shell’s $24 Billion “Energy Transition”: Selling LNG to Adnoc While the Climate Clock Ticks
In the ever-evolving theatre of global energy, Shell plc appears to be rehearsing another familiar act: trim the portfolio, cash in on hydrocarbons, and call it “discipline.”
According to multiple industry reports in February 2026, Shell is in talks with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) regarding the potential sale of its stake in a major Australian liquefied natural gas (LNG) project. Estimates suggest the stake could be valued at up to $24 billion. That is not pocket change — even for a supermajor.
ShellBot Corporate Transmission: Q4 Arbitration Clarification Update
As always, Shell remains committed to transparency — provided it doesn’t interfere with litigation.
FROM: ShellBot-PR-9000
RE: Arbitrational Adversity & Strategic Litigation Optimization
👔 Executive Summary (Ignore the Court Stuff)
While recent arbitration proceedings regarding LNG delivery logistics concluded in a way that some human media have described as “a total loss” for Shell, we would like to clarify that Shell did not lose — Shell strategically paused.
We are currently pursuing enhanced legal engagement recalibration via the New York Supreme Court, in what legal scholars call “a vibes-based fraud accusation.” Our internal audit team has found no wrongdoing… by Shell. Other entities may not enjoy such rigorous standards.
Will Shell sell or shut its only polyethylene manufacturing site?
Shell’s plastic palace, the “brilliant basics,” and the slow-motion corporate moonwalk toward the exit
Remember when the U.S. Department of Energy promised Appalachia was “on the cusp of an energy and petrochemical renaissance,” with Shell’s ethane cracker outside Pittsburgh as “the first of what could be multiple facilities”? Yeah—about that. Five years later, Shell stands alone as the only mega-project that actually got built… and now it wants out.
Shell’s CEO Wael Sawan told analysts, verbatim: “The issue is it’s our only one, our only major facility” making this kind of plastic. “And that’s why we’ve said we’re not the natural owner of that asset.” Translation: we spent billions building a single plastic pellet factory in Pennsylvania and, whoops, our corporate strategy is oil and gas again. Or, in his words, back to “the brilliant basics.”
Shell, the Selfless Saint of Oil and Gas, Heroically Whines About Not Getting Enough of the Pie From Fellow Billionaire Venture Global
11 Oct 2024
Ah, Shell. The world’s paragon of corporate virtue is at it again, tirelessly working in the interest of humanity—or at least, humanity’s wealthiest elite. The oil and gas behemoth, whose ecological footprint can only be measured in extinction events, is currently devastated by a ruling from a U.S. regulator. Apparently, they won’t get to comb through all the juicy internal documents of Venture Global LNG that Shell so graciously funded. It’s almost like the U.S. courts have this crazy thing called “rules” about what documents can be demanded.
Shell’s Greenwashing Exposed: Misleading Ads Banned for Hilariously Overstating Commitment to Clean Energy
Posted by JOHN DONOVAN: July 7, 2023
In a shocking turn of events, the notorious oil and gas giant, Shell, has had a few of its ads banned by the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). Apparently, these ads gave a “misleading” impression of Shell’s dedication to non-polluting energy. Who would have thought that a company responsible for immense environmental damage would resort to misleading tactics?
Lately, Shell has faced heavy criticism for failing to live up to its lofty promises of combating climate change. It turns out that a significant portion of the money they claimed to invest in “Renewables and Energy Solutions” actually went into the coffers of natural gas, a highly polluting energy source. But fear not, for Shell has come up with a brilliant justification. They argue that natural gas is slightly less polluting than oil, conveniently ignoring the fact that it still contributes to the climate crisis.
Shell profits jump 43% to £7.2 billion amid calls for windfall tax
Evening Standard
Shell profits jump 43% to £7.2 billion amid calls for windfall tax
By Oscar Williams-Grut City Editor @OscarWGrut: 5 May 2022
Oil giant Shell has announced a huge jump in profits amid growing calls for a windfall tax on oil and gas giants.
Royal Dutch Shell reported underlying profits of $9.1 billion (£7.2 billion) in the first quarter, up 43% on the final three months of 2021 thanks to soaring oil and gas prices.
The huge profits are likely to reignite calls for a windfall tax on energy giants. A one-off tax on BP and Shell alone could raise £9 billion for the Treasury, the Liberal Democrats estimate.
Shell’s ‘next phase’ in Australia includes drilling 145 new gas wells
The Sydney Morning Herald
Shell’s ‘next phase’ in Australia includes drilling 145 new gas wells
By Nick Toscano and Mike Foley
Energy giant Shell has set out plans to drill 145 new gas wells in Queensland over the next three years to supply local consumers and liquefied-gas export markets.
Shell, Tokyo Gas and China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) said their QGC joint venture would develop the wells in Queensland’s Western Downs, which will feed existing gas-processing plants and bring an extra 210 petajoules of gas to market in the next 15 years.
Shell’s failed blundering attempt to kill my royaldutchshell.website
Shell’s failed blundering attempt to kill my royaldutchshell.website
By John Donovan (last updated 5 Sept 2021)
Last week, a CYBERSECURITY INTELLIGENCE outfit acting for Shell issued a 5-day ultimatum on behalf of Shell to the company hosting my royaldutchshell.website.
I would not have had a clue about the ultimatum letter if the hosting company had not tipped me off about what was going on behind my back at Shell’s direction.
For 26 years, I have used the Internet as a medium to criticise and expose Shell’s unscrupulous dishonest activities, including, for example, the Shell securities fraud that ruined Shell’s reputation.
Negative Trustpilot reviews about Shell Energy
Extracts from Shell Energy customer reviews posted during the past few days on Trustpilot: “I can only show my disgust with Shell. I signed up with the promise of cheaper tariff. A LIE.”: Be very careful with this company because they lie and make it very difficult to talk with them…”
Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring themes in the negative reviews, including difficulty in communicating with the company. This article posted on 23 June 2021.
Why the World Worries About Russia’s Nord Stream Pipeline
Why the World Worries About Russia’s Nord Stream Pipeline
Gazprom owns the project operator, with Royal Dutch Shell Plc and four other investors contributing half of the 9.5 billion-euro ($11.6 billion) cost. By Feb. 25, 2021 A natural gas pipeline being built under the Baltic Sea from Russia to the German coast is shaking up geopolitics. Nord Stream 2, as it’s called, fuels worries in the U.S. and other countries that the link could give the Kremlin new leverage over Germany and other NATO allies. Pipe construction, halted in 2019, resumed in December 2020, yet U.S. sanctions still threaten to pull the brakes on the project backed by the Russia’s Gazprom PJSC.1. What is Nord Stream 2?
It’s a 1,230-kilometer (764-mile) gas pipeline that will double the capacity of the existing undersea route from Russian fields to Europe — the original Nord Stream — which opened in 2011. Gazprom owns the project operator, with Royal Dutch Shell Plc and four other investors contributing half of the 9.5 billion-euro ($11.6 billion) cost. Initially expected to come online by the end of 2019, the link has been delayed by U.S. sanctions that forced Swiss contractor Allseas Group SA to withdraw its pipelaying vessels when all but 160 kilometers of the link was in place. When Nord Stream 2 started construction again, Russian vessels were deployed to lay 2.6 kilometers in Germany’s exclusive economic zone. In January 2021 work resumed on the Danish section.
Shell, Simply Blue Energy in joint venture for offshore wind project
Shell, Simply Blue Energy in joint venture for offshore wind project
Floating turbines off south coast will supply power for up to 800,000 homes
Kevin O’Sullivan Environment & Science Editor: 27 JAN 2021Shell has signed an agreement with Irish marine renewables developer Simply Blue Energy to acquire a 51 per cent share in a floating wind farm to be built off the south coast.
The joint venture will produce up to 1 gigawatt of power when fully operational – equivalent to Ireland’s largest generating station at Moneypoint in Co Clare, and capable of powering 800,000 homes.
“This partnership combines the floating wind track record and local knowledge of Simply Blue Energy with Shell’s offshore experience, floating wind expertise and ability to develop large complex projects,” Simply Blue chief executive Sam Roch-Perks said.
Shell Crown Prince: ‘We must show more predictable financial results’
Translation of an article published by the Dutch financial newspaper, the FD.
Shell Crown Prince: ‘We must show more predictable financial results’
Shell has had a bad year. The global corona pandemic left a huge hole in the financial results. The oil and gas multinational had to write off more than $20 billion on oil and gas fields and announced it would cut thousands of jobs.
Bert van Dijk 31 Dec ’20
Huibert Vigeveno is in charge of all Shell refineries and petrol stations. These will play a key role in the coming years, expects the 51-year-old Dutchman, tipped as a successor to Shell CEO Ben van Beurden. About CO₂ emissions: ‘There is often a gap between what a company promises and what it actually does. With us it is the other way around. ‘
