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December 5th, 2006:

The Guardian: FTSE shrugs off retail slump to close higher: BP-Royal Dutch Shell and Royal Dutch Shell-Total are feasible combinations

EXTRACT: Royal Dutch Shell added 28p to £18.04. A hefty note from ABN Amro suggests the company should merge, either with BP or Total. “In our opinion, the creation of an oil mega-major would generate important strategic and financial benefits for the companies and significant value for shareholders,” wrote ABN. “BP-Royal Dutch Shell and Royal Dutch Shell-Total are feasible combinations. The regulatory responses to both would be manageable.

“Despite the need to divest some downstream activities, we believe the synergy potential of both combinations would be material, with pre-tax cost savings and revenue enhancements of up to $10.3bn per annum.” read more

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

Daily Telegraph: Database: Energy: Wednesday 6 December 2006

• BP, Europe’s second-largest oil and natural-gas company, delivered a cargo of Egyptian liquefied natural gas to Britain, boosting supply to the country’s power stations and homes.

• Supplies of natural gas entering the UK climbed because of increased shipments of the fuel into the Easington terminal, which receives it through the Langeled pipeline from Norway.

• Interconnector, the owner of a natural-gas pipeline linking England and Belgium, will start exporting the fuel to mainland Europe from the UK tomorrow to meet demand from suppliers. read more

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

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Oil News Roundup: December 5, 2006 5:01 p.m.

Crude-oil prices finished flat, ending the day at $62.43, while natural gas lost 1.6%, declining for the fourth consecutive day. Here is Tuesday’s roundup of oil and energy news:

* * *
ENERGY-POLICY CRITICS: Policies that restrict energy production, combined with rising demand for petroleum products, will maintain upward pressure on oil prices for at least the next year, according to a survey of industry executives. Nearly four out of five executives and managers surveyed last month by Deloitte & Touche USA LLP said U.S. energy policies weren’t headed in the right direction. read more

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

The Daily Reckoning: Polonium 210 in the stock market

…Polonium 210 didn’t get much press before last week, but now it’s everywhere – at the Itsu sushi bar in London…on two British Airways planes…in the Sheraton Park Hotel…offices in Mayfair and Marble Arch…and in the dead body of a former KGB spy. Polonium 210 might poison the Western world’s hottest stock market, too. Investors holding AIM stocks in London take note…

Sitting at No.84 in the Periodic Table, Polonium 210 kept a low profile until it killed ex-Russian agent Alexander Litvinenko last Thursday. Discovered by Marie Curie back in 1897, it can be used to help cut static charge in textile factories and remove dust from photographic film. Also known as “Radium F”, it’s acted as a neutron trigger in nuclear weapons. And now it’s become the poison-of-choice for killing awkward Russian dissidents. read more

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

RIA Novosti: Top prosecutors to press criminal charges over Sakhalin II

05/ 12/ 2006 

MOSCOW, December 5 (RIA Novosti) – The Prosecutor General’s Office said Tuesday it will press criminal charges over the Sakhalin II oil and gas project in Russia’s Far East.

Russia’s environmental watchdog said last month that project operator Sakhalin Energy, controlled by Royal Dutch Shell, is in breach of Russia’s environmental regulations, and asked the agency overseeing the use of water resources to consider stripping it of 19 licenses.

“There is sufficient evidence to open a criminal case,” Prosecutor General Yury Chaika said. read more

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

International Herald Tribune: European stocks end higher: Shares in oil companies BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Total boosted by M&A potential

EXTRACT: Shares in oil companies such as BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Total were more than 1.6 percent higher, boosted by broker comment on the M&A potential of several top European oil companies.

THE ARTICLE

The Associated Press
Published: December 5, 2006
 
LONDON: European shares ended with strong gains Tuesday, as strength from companies tied to the commodity sector and higher U.S. equity markets enabled investors to shrug off some poorly received updates from banking giant HSBC and electronics giant Philips. read more

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

macleans.ca: Russian Roulette

EXTRACT: With the high price of oil these days, Russia retired its IMF debt last year. Gratitude? None. Royal Dutch Shell and Japanese companies Mitsubishi and Mitsui, which are engaged in the Sakhalin-2 oil and gas field, now stand accused of violating Russian environmental regulations and could face a US$20-billion lawsuit for ecological damages. The absurdity of Moscow expressing environmental concerns aside, project costs soared in part because the companies caved in to environmentalists’ demands to move a pipeline away from whale feeding grounds. Russia wanted to restructure its cost-sharing deal with the companies, and when it didn’t get its way it began flexing its muscles to threaten Sakhalin-2. Now Exxon Mobil’s project, Sakhalin-1, is in similar jeopardy. They aren’t alone — the Kremlin has been creatively targeting other joint ventures. Russia has used these companies to modernize — and now is jettisoning them using creative methods. read more

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

The Guardian: Royal Dutch Shell… should merge, either with BP or Total

Tuesday 5 December 2006

Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell added 28p to £18.04. A hefty note from ABN Amro suggests the company should merge, either with BP or Total. “In our opinion, the creation of an oil mega-major would generate important strategic and financial benefits for the companies and significant value for shareholders,” wrote ABN.

“BP-Royal Dutch Shell and Royal Dutch Shell-Total are feasible combinations.

The regulatory responses to both would be manageable.

“Despite the need to divest some downstream activities, we believe the synergy potential of both combinations would be material, with pre-tax cost savings and revenue enhancements of up to $10.3bn per annum.” read more

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

Stratfor: Russian Prosecutor General’s office confirmed Dec. 5 that it will proceed with criminal charges against Sakhalin Energy

EXTRACT: Sakhalin-2… appears more and more likely to be shut down for its various violations.

THE ARTICLE

Headline: Russia: Prosecution as a Weapon against Foreign-Controlled Energy Projects

December 05, 2006 20 39  GMT

Summary

The Russian Prosecutor General’s office confirmed Dec. 5 that it will proceed with criminal charges against Sakhalin Energy, the Royal Dutch/Shell-controlled operator of the Sakhalin-2 project.

Russian regional prosecutors are also threatening to suspend the Caspian Pipeline Consortium and its operator, Chevron Corp., accusing them of operating under an invalid license. The charges are an effort to facilitate the handover of the projects — the only ones in Russia owned by foreigners — to Russian state-controlled energy companies. read more

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

Reuters: Sakhalin-2 project broke lot of rules, says Russia

05 Dec 2006 21:40:41 GMT
By David Ljunggren

OTTAWA, Dec 5 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell’s $22 billion Sakhalin-2 oil and gas project has broken a significant number of environmental regulations “in barbaric fashion” and the company and its partners will have to pay a fine, Russian Natural Resources Minister Yuri Trutnev said on Tuesday.

Trutnev said the process of working out the size of the fine should be ready by the middle of 2007, adding that Moscow has no intention of revisiting the original production-sharing agreement that Shell and its partners signed with Russia. read more

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

MarketWatch: Shell upgraded on mega-merger hopes

ABN Amro sees over $10 billion a year in annual savings

By Steve Goldstein, MarketWatch
Dec 5, 2006

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Royal Dutch Shell was upgraded to buy from hold by ABN Amro on Tuesday, as the brokerage said the case for merging two of the largest European oil companies is compelling but largely overlooked by the market.

There’s been some speculation that BP could tie up, and David Cline in a 116-page analysis examines what would happen if Shell or BP would merge with each other, or with France’s Total read more

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

Reuters: Argentina fines Shell $7.5 mln over diesel shortage

Tue Dec 5, 2006 3:13pm ET

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, Dec 5 (Reuters) – Argentina slapped a $7.5 million fine on Royal Dutch Shell on Tuesday over shortages of diesel at its service stations, a measure the oil company said it would appeal.

This is the latest in a string of confrontations between the company and the government of center-left President Nestor Kirchner, who called on Argentines to boycott Shell (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile , Research) products last year after the company increased its prices. read more

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

Mineweb.com: Peter Hambro gold mining ops in Russian trouble (with Oleg Mitvol) – view from Moscow

John Helmer
05-DEC-06 08:00′

MOSCOW (Mineweb.com) –A routine inspection by the Russian government’s environmental protection agency Rospriradnadzor has suddenly exposed Peter Hambro Mining’s (PHM) gold projects to fines and the possible loss of licences. It has also exposed Peter Hambro himself to the charge that he tried to mislead the market with a public statement about the problem that has been denied by the Russian regulator.

The trouble for PHM follows the Russian gold mining sector’s worst mine accident in more than a decade. A main shaft fire in September at the Darasun mine operated by Highland Gold, a London AIM-listed miner now under Barrick Gold control, burned for almost a week, initially trapping 61 miners, and killing 25. read more

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

The Times: Analysts suggest that Shell should ponder mega-major

December 05, 2006
Bryce Elder

Shell, Europe’s largest oil company, closed 6p lower at £17.69 despite suggestions that the group would be sensible to investigate a multibillion-pound union with one of its closest peers.
 
“The case for merging Royal Dutch Shell with BP or Total is compelling and overlooked,” ABN Amro told clients. “The creation of an oil mega-major would generate important strategic and financial benefits for the companies and significant value for shareholders.”

Bringing together two companies both worth in excess of £100 billion is unlikely to be a simple task. Antitrust authorities would need to be placated, requiring sales of downstream operations, such as petrol stations. Nevertheless, David Cline, the ABN analyst, thought that the cost savings would make it worth the effort. He calculated synergies in excess of $10 billion (£5 billion) a year, equivalent to an extra £10 per Shell share if the Anglo-Dutch group’ s management were prepared to cede control. The Dutch broker conceded that the City was not expecting such an audacious move. However, it saw enough potential in the prospect to upgrade Shell to “buy” from “hold”. 
 
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,8211-2487025,00.html read more

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

Irish Times: Corrib field pushes Shell into red

By: Emmet Oliver, Irish Times
Published: Dec 05, 2006

Shell’s Irish arm, which acts as operator of the controversial Corrib gas field, has made a loss of almost 50 million as opponents of the project take their campaign outside Ireland.

Shell E&P Limited, the Corrib operator and 45 per cent shareholder in the field, has posted an operating loss of 49.1 million for 2005. Costs associated with the project have risen noticeably to 46.7 million from 14.8 million in the previous year. This was an increase of over 200 per cent. read more

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

Financial Times: Hostile lands empty coffers

By Ed Crooks
Published: December 5 2006 02:00 | Last updated: December 5 2006 02:00

Even by the standards of the oil and gas industry, the $10bn increase in the budget for the Sakhalin-2 liquefied natural gas (LNG) project is a big cost overrun.

The project, in the hostile territory of Sakhalin island off the far east coast of Russia, 55 per cent owned by Royal Dutch Shell, was planned at $10bn, but is now expected to cost $20bn.

But Shell is far from unique in finding that it has under-estimated a project’s costs. High prices for oil and gas, and excitement about the new prospects being opened up by LNG, has led to an investment boom, and the number of projects trying to squeeze into the constrained capacity of the supply industries has led to over-heating. read more

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

Financial Times: Exports overlook domestic needs

By Raphael Minder
Published: December 5 2006 02:00 | Last updated: December 5 2006 02:00

In July, China received its first supplies of Australian LNG. The long-term contract, valued at about A$25bn, is the single largest export deal struck in Australian history.

Even though some experts raised concerns that Australia had locked into acontract that set too low a price for its future gas shipments, the agreement with Beijing was hailed as a significant step towards cementing China’s reliance on Australia as an energy supplier. read more

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

Financial Times: World prepares for a transformed industry

By Daniel Pimlott
Published: December 5 2006 02:00 | Last updated: December 5 2006 02:00

Liquefied natural gas, or LNG, made by supercooling gas into liquid form to shrink its volume and make it easier to transport, has traditionally been a niche product.

However, consumption is now growing at 10 per cent a year, compared to 2 per cent a year for pipeline gas, and it is among the fastest growing energy markets in the world.

With European and North American gas reserves near or over production peaks and demand up in Asian countries with little native gas, LNG is experiencing an explosion in demand. By 2010-11 it is expected the LNG industry will have doubled relative to 2004. read more

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

Financial Times: Russia warns over relations with UK

By Neil Buckley in Moscow and Jimmy Burns and Daniel Dombey in London
Published: December 4 2006 20:42 | Last updated: December 4 2006 20:42

Russia warned on Monday that the mounting furore over the poisoning in London of Alexander Litvinenko was damaging relations between the two countries.

As British investigators arrived in Moscow last night for a highly unusual joint probe, Sergei Lavrov, Russian foreign minister, hit out at what he called the “politicisation” of the case.

UK investigators and officials have refused to rule out the possibility that the former KGB agent was killed as a result of a conspiracy involving Russian security services involved in political manoeuvring. read more

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

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Oil News Roundup: December 4, 2006 6:08 p.m.

Crude-oil prices fell below $63 a barrel, while natural-gas futures dropped more than 7% with traders concerned about the potential for U.S. energy supplies to outpace demand. Here is Monday’s roundup of oil and energy news:

* * *
CHINA AND OPEC: China wants to negotiate directly with the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to secure oil supply and an equitable share of the oil market, according to the Associated Press. “Only through this can we maintain security and stability of our oil imports,” Zhai Jun, China’s assistant minister of foreign affairs, said in a speech to the Arab Strategy Forum in Dubai. Soaring demand for oil in rapidly industrializing China has been blamed as one of the chief causes for oil prices that have spiraled higher over the past two years. read more

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

The Times: Analysts suggest that Shell should ponder mega-major: ‘with BP or Total’

December 05, 2006
Bryce Elder

Shell, Europe’s largest oil company, closed 6p lower at £17.69 despite suggestions that the group would be sensible to investigate a multibillion-pound union with one of its closest peers.
 
“The case for merging Royal Dutch Shell with BP or Total is compelling and overlooked,” ABN Amro told clients. “The creation of an oil mega-major would generate important strategic and financial benefits for the companies and significant value for shareholders.”

Bringing together two companies both worth in excess of £100 billion is unlikely to be a simple task. Antitrust authorities would need to be placated, requiring sales of downstream operations, such as petrol stations. Nevertheless, David Cline, the ABN analyst, thought that the cost savings would make it worth the effort. He calculated synergies in excess of $10 billion (£5 billion) a year, equivalent to an extra £10 per Shell share if the Anglo-Dutch group’ s management were prepared to cede control. The Dutch broker conceded that the City was not expecting such an audacious move. However, it saw enough potential in the prospect to upgrade Shell to “buy” from “hold”. 
 
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,8211-2487025,00.html read more

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