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March, 2007:

The Mirror: YOUR money: BIZ BUREAU – BIZ NEWS

Published: Mar 28, 2007

SHELL Livewire is looking for Britain’s Young Entrepreneur Of The Year. The awards are open to all budding Bransons, aged 16-30, whose businesses will have been trading for between three and 18 months on March 31, 2007.

Nominations are welcome from friends, family, business advisers and mentors. Entries, which need to be submitted by March 31, are via an online application form at www.shell-livewire.org/ win10k along with full entry details.

Winners of regional heats will compete for the UK title in June and the chance to win the top prize of pounds 10,000.
read more

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AFX Asia (Focus): Shell Nigeria denies charges it lost radioactive materials

Published: Mar 28, 2007

LAGOS (AFX) – Anglo-Dutch oil giant Royal Dutch Shell in Nigeria on Tuesday confirmed that the federal government had charged it with the alleged loss of some “radioactive tools” belonging to one of its contractors.

It also denied reports that it had been involved in any dumping of toxic waste in Nigeria.

The company said in a statement that it was “aware that the federal government has filed some charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja against SPDC and some other corporate organisations.” read more

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Times Online: Race starts for a new Shell chief executive

EXTRACT: He took over three years ago when Sir Philip Watts, his controversial predecessor, was forced to quit after the reserves scandal that turned Royal Dutch Shell into a City laughing stock.

March 28, 2007
Steve Hawkes

The UK oil giant said that Jeroen van der Veer will leave in two years. He was expected to retire in 2008

Jeroen van der Veer will step down as chief executive of Royal Dutch Shell in two years’ time, the Anglo-Dutch oil giant announced today.

The group said that the 59-year-old had agreed to extend his present contract by one year but would bow out on June 30, 2009. read more

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Houston Chronicle: Breezing in from Europe: ELECTRICITY

Tom Fowler, Houston Chronicle – Texas – KRTBN
Published: Mar 28, 2007

Less than two years after Houston-based Horizon Wind Energy was purchased by Goldman Sachs, the wind power developer will be sold to Portugal’s largest utility for $2.2 billion.

Energias de Portugal, a utility with nearly 7 million customers in Portugal and Spain, announced its successful bid for the firm on Tuesday.

EDP said it will invest an additional $600 million in existing wind power projects as part of the deal and assume about $180 million in debt, bringing the total deal value to nearly $3 billion. read more

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RIA Novosti: Russia launches probe into ExxonMobil-led project in Far East

12:27 | 28/ 03/ 2007 

MOSCOW, March 28 (RIA Novosti) – Russia’s environmental watchdog launched a probe Wednesday into alleged environmental violations at the Sakhalin I hydrocarbon project off Russia’s Pacific Coast, which is run by U.S. giant ExxonMobil, a Rosprirodnadzor deputy head said.

Oleg Mitvol said the Federal Agency for the Oversight of Natural Resources would start with paperwork, which would take a month, and continue with inspections at the site in May.

“We will examine the documents and later, in May, we will start environmental probes,” Mitvol said. read more

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Bloomberg: Shell Chief Executive to Stay in Post Until June 2009 (Update3)

By Fred Pals

March 28 (Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Europe’s biggest oil company, said Jeroen van der Veer will remain chief executive officer until June 30, 2009, in a statement intended to make clear its strategy and leadership in the coming years.

Van der Veer became chief executive in October 2004. He turns 60 in October of this year, the usual retirement age for a Dutch chief executive.

Van der Veer replaced Phil Watts, who departed earlier in the year after The Hague-based company admitted to overstating its reserves. Shell’s reserves announcement in January 2004 hurt the company’s reputation with investors and led to lawsuits and fines by regulators. read more

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AFX News Limited / Forbes: Royal Dutch Shell says Van der Veer to remain CEO until 2009 UPDATE

03.28.07, 6:44 AM ET
(Adds details, background)

LONDON (AFX) – Royal Dutch Shell PLC (nyse: RDSA – news – people ) said Jeroen van der Veer will stay on as the Anglo-Dutch oil giant’s chief executive until June 30, 2009.

Van der Veer, who is turning 60 in October, became Shell’s first CEO following the unification of Shell Transport Trading PLC and Royal Dutch Petroleum NV in 2005.

‘Jeroen’s decision today provides clarity, and I am most pleased that he will stay on longer, providing valuable continuity and leadership in Shell over the next years,’ said chairman Jorma Ollila. read more

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Lloyds List: Energy Briefing: Shell starts Pohokura

Published: Mar 28, 2007

Shell starts Pohokura

SHELL has started the main production platform on the Pohokura project offshore New Zealand to boost gas and condensate deliveries, writes Martyn Wingrove.

Offshore hydrocarbons are piped from the platform, 8 km from the North Island coast, to an onshore processing station at Motunui, near New Plymouth.

Gas from Pohokura is fed directly to the national grid and condensates are piped to storage tanks at Omata.

THOUSANDS of Thai offshore workers are to be retrained as the government has agreed to improve safety standards. read more

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Irish Times: Shell denies link to rising aluminium levels in water supply

Lorna Siggins, Marine Correspondent,
Published: Mar 28, 2007

Shell E&P Ireland has said it is not responsible for highly elevated aluminium levels in Carrowmore lake, the public water supply for Erris, north Mayo.

The company has also denied that it was pumping diesel from the Bellanaboy terminal site on Monday night into a stream, which feeds into the Carrowmore lake catchment. The company has acknowledged a “small” diesel leak from a generator at the site in the last few days.

Results obtained by The Irish Times show elevated aluminium levels in a number of tests carried out in January and February of this year on Mayo County Council’s behalf for water run-off from the Bellanaboy terminal site, the Bellanaboy river and Carrowmore lake. The lake supplies drinking water to 10,000 people in Erris. read more

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Financial Post (Canada): Chevron pulls drilling rig off Nfld. coast: Committed to Mexico

Published: Mar 28, 2007

CALGARY – A Chevron Corp.- led consortium exploring for oil in the Orphan basin, a new area in rough waters 400 kilometres off Newfoundland, has postponed further drilling after its first well took months longer than planned and costs soared to an estimated US$200-million, making it one of the most expensive in the world.

The move is yet another setback for Danny Williams, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, who wants to increase provincial revenue from oil development and take equity stakes in projects. read more

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FT REPORT – DIGITAL BUSINESS: How well are we being served?

By David Bowen, Financial Times
Published: Mar 28, 2007

A corporate website has to serve several interested groups – jobseekers, investors, the media, customers and society. The FT Bowen Craggs Index examines this in detail, with the table, right, giving scores for how well each group is served. This article identifies the three companies who best serve each group. Scores are out of 32.

To recalibrate the tables, visit www.bowencraggs.com/ftindex.

Serving jobseekers

1= UBS 26

1= Microsoft 26

3= Siemens 24 read more

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FT REPORT – DIGITAL BUSINESS: A message to the world

By David Bowen, Financial Times
Published: Mar 28, 2007

A large company’s web presence is an expensive thing – companies brave enough to tot up the cost may find it runs into tens of millions of dollars a year. Yet return on investment is impossible to calculate.

But with the web now becoming a mass medium in the developed world, and growing at a giddy rate elsewhere, it is an essential part of the communications mix.

What is needed is a way of judging whether a web package is as good as it can be – that is, doing all the things it could be doing, as well as it can do them. And – at least as important – to see who is doing better so that best practice can be observed and adopted or adapted. These are the jobs the FT Bowen Craggs Index is attempting to do. read more

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Financial Times: FT REPORT – DIGITAL BUSINESS: ABOUT BOWEN CRAGGS

Published: Mar 28, 2007

Bowen Craggs & Co (www.bowencraggs.com) advises companies and other organisations on their web presence. It does not build sites, but helps improve effectiveness with strategy, measurement and continuous improvement techniques.

Recent clients include Deutsche Bank, Crédit Suisse, Shell, BP, GlaxoSmithKline, Unilever, Textron and the World Bank. Its association with some companies in the Index has not affected the scoring: it has no interest in marking them either up or down. 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: BP’s Rosneft Bid Shows Need to Please in Russia

Wall Street Journal BP Chart

Offer for 9% Stake
Seen as Way to Keep
Standing in Nation
By GUY CHAZAN
March 28, 2007; Page A10

MOSCOW — A decision by BP PLC’s Russian joint venture to take part in a contentious auction for Russian oil assets shows the lengths BP is prepared to go to protect its landmark Russian investment, industry observers say.

The auction concerned a 9% stake in OAO Rosneft, the state oil company. BP’s Russian joint venture, TNK-BP, offered $7.58 billion but lost out to Rosneft itself, one of two state energy companies whose goodwill could be critical for BP’s future in Russia. The auction required two bidders to go ahead. Rosneft won the stake for $7.60 billion.
 
“It appears BP was trying to curry favor with the Kremlin and Rosneft by conferring legitimacy on the auction,” said Ivan Mazalov at Moscow-based Prosperity Capital Management, a minority shareholder in TNK-BP. read more

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The Guardian: Rising to the challenge?

EXTRACT: Globalisation helped drive things along, with controversies surrounding companies such as Shell, Nike and Monsanto.

THE ARTICLE

For more than three decades, John Elkington has watched and been involved in the growth of the environment movement. He looks at how the business and political landscapes have changed in response

Wednesday March 28, 2007

Pinch yourself. Al Gore has walked off with an Oscar; Gordon Brown is said to be green; German chancellor Angela Merkel and French president Jacques Chirac vie to put Europe on a low carbon diet; President Hu Jintao of China declares global warming is not just an environmental issue but make-or-break for the country’s future; Arnold Schwarzenegger, California’s governor, morphs from Terminator to Germinator on the strength of his muscular support for green technology; and even Wal-Mart is trying to sell sustainability. Who’d have thought it? read more

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The Times: Rosneft buys asset cheaply after BP drops out of early bidding

March 28, 2007
Carl Mortished and Steve Hawkes

BP conceded defeat in the auction yesterday of a $7.6 billion (£3.86 billion) stake in Rosneft after only five bids, allowing the state oil company to buy in 9.4 per cent of its share capital at a 10 per cent discount to market value.

BP was the only alternative bidder to take part in the auction by the liquidator of Yukos. The bidding commenced at $7.47 billion.

The British multinational’s intention to participate in the bankruptcy sale emerged late last week as Lord Browne of Madingley, BP’s chief executive, introduced Tony Hayward, his successor, to President Putin at a meeting in the Kremlin. 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: Shell CEO to stay on an extra year

Wed Mar 28, 2007 6:44 AM BST

LONDON, March 28 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile , Research) said on Wednesday its chief executive, Jeroen van der Veer, would continue in his role until June 2009, extending his tenure for a year longer than expected.

Previously, the chief at the Anglo-Dutch oil major was intended to retire in the June after reaching 60 years of age. Van der Veer will be 60 in October this year.

Shell’s decision is in contrast with rival BP Plc (BP.L: Quote, Profile , Research), where CEO John Browne will depart a year and a half earlier than expected after a dispute with BP’s chairman, Peter Sutherland, over Browne’s desire for an extension of his tenure. 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.

Bloomberg: Shell Chief Executive to Stay in Post Until June 2009 (Update1)

By Fred Pals

March 28 (Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Europe’s biggest oil company, said Chief Executive Officer Jeroen van der Veer will continue in the position until June 30, 2009.

“Jeroen’s decision today provides clarity, and I am most pleased that he will stay on longer, providing valuable continuity and leadership in Shell over the next years,” Shell Chairman Jorma Ollila said today in a PR Newswire statement.

Van der Veer became CEO of Shell in October 2004, replacing Phil Watts, who departed earlier in the year after The Hague-based company admitted to overstating its reserves. 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.

AFX News Limited / Forbes: Technip wins order from Shell to lay subsea pipes in Gulf of Mexico

03.28.07, 3:37 AM ET
 
PARIS (AFX) – Technip said it has won an order from Royal Dutch Shell to lay subsea pipes in the Ursa and Princess fields in the Gulf of Mexico.

The financial terms were not disclosed.

The installation is scheduled for the fourth quarter of this year, Technip stated.

The Ursa and Princess oil and gas fields are located 140 miles south-east of New Orleans.

[email protected]
gt/ic

Copyright AFX News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.

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.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc: Royal Dutch Shell plc Updates on Chief Executive

THE HAGUE, The Netherlands, March 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Royal Dutch Shell plc (NYSE: RDS.A, NYSE: RDS.B) announced today that Jeroen van der Veer will continue as Chief Executive until 30 June 2009. Mr. Van der Veer became Royal Dutch Shell’s first Chief Executive, following the unification of the company in 2005.

Jorma Ollila, Royal Dutch Shell plc’s Chairman said “There has been great progress in our company in recent years. Jeroen’s decision today provides clarity, and I am most pleased that he will stay on longer, providing valuable continuity and leadership in Shell over the next years”. read more

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Tribune.com (Nigeria): Shell denies involvement in toxic waste dump

Martin Ayankola, Lagos – 28.03.2007

Shell Petroleum Development Company Limited (SPDC) management said on Tuesday that the company had not been involved or charged in connection with any dumping of toxic waste anywhere in Nigeria as alleged in media reports.

“However, SPDC is aware that the Federal Government has filed some charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja against SPDC and some other corporate organisations, including some individual employees of these organisations. The case is in respect of some radioactive tools belonging to one of SPDC’s contractors which allegedly went missing in transit between SPDC’s Ogunu Jetty and the contractor’s work site at a rig location in SPDC’s Western swamp area”, the company said in a statement issued in Lagos. read more

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Voice of America: US Efforts to Isolate Iran Economically Gaining Momentum: If Shell moves forward with its $10 billion deal with Iran, it will be sanctioned

President of Iran

President of Iran: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (20 Feb 2007)

By Mil Arcega
Washington, D.C.
27 March 2007

At least five states in the U.S. are following Missouri’s lead with proposals to divest public pension funds of shares in companies that do business with Iran.  On Capitol Hill, proposed amendments to the Iran Sanctions Act could make it harder for foreign-owned companies to invest in countries that the U.S. State Department considers “sponsors of terror.”  VOA’s Mil Arcega reports. read more

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Oilvoice.com: The Law of Unintended Consequences: A Change in the Value of Brent

When the partners in the Buzzard field chose the Forties pipeline over the Flotta pipeline to bring their oil to market, little did they know as they compared the transportation tariffs on offer that their decision would have consequences for the price of two thirds of the world’s oil. Now Buzzard is onstream and the uncertainty surrounding its future production profile has prompted the oil trading community at a meeting in London on 27th March to question Forties’ role as a deliverable grade in the influential Brent contract. What they decide has far-reaching consequences throughout the industry. 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.

Brandon Sun (Canada): Shell launches roadshow to sell Sarnia oil refinery expansion

TORONTO (CP) – Weeks after Ontario was engulfed in a gasoline shortage of epic proportions, Shell Canada (TSX:SHC) is asking the public whether it would support construction of a new Sarnia-area oil refinery.

The company is to hold an open house Wednesday afternoon at a hotel in Wallaceburg, Ont., north of Chatham, to outline plans for a multibillion dollar refinery that would process heavy crude oil from Alberta.

The facility would be built alongside Shell’s existing refinery in St. Clair Township, said Leigh Anne Richardson, a spokesperson for Shell Canada. read more

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Politico.com: Senators Seek Way to Mend Faulty Oil and Gas Contracts

By: Jean Chemnick
March 27, 2007 06:54 PM EST 
 
Getting oil and gas companies to renegotiate their leases in the Gulf of Mexico could require a carrot, a stick — or both.

The House opted for both in January, and the companies were not happy.

The Senate is still weighing its options, including giving the industry the carrot it wants.

The government has leased 8,000 sites in the gulf, which supplies 30 percent of the nation’s crude oil and 21 percent of its natural gas. The companies that lease drilling rights pay the government royalties worth between 12 1/2 percent and 16 2/3 percent of the market value of a barrel of oil. To spur domestic production, Congress passed the Deep Water Royalty Relief Act in 1995 that gave the companies a break on paying royalties if oil prices fell below $34.73 a barrel. read more

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The Scotsman: Oil and gas industry fuels Aberdeen land rush

Aberdeen hit by land shortage

Aberdeen has been hit by a land shortage Picture: Ian Rutherford)

BY SHARON WARD
 
ABERDEEN’S success as a global hub for the oil and gas industry has led to a major shortage of land and commercial property for firms looking to expand.

Ken Shaw, investment partner at property firm Rydens in Aberdeen said the city now has a severe shortage of stock.

He said: “To say the market is busy is an understatement. The take-up of office space has been significant over the past 18 months and, as a result, there is virtually no Grade A accommodation available in the city centre or west end of Aberdeen. read more

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Petroleumworld.com: Mexico’s PEMEX oil company in financial trouble

By Greg Flakus
Voice of America – VOA
Houston:  03 28 07

Mexico’s state-owned oil company, Petroleos Mexicanos, better known as Pemex, celebrated its 69th birthday on March 18, amid concerns that it is on the brink of insolvency and its production is falling. As VOA’s Greg Flakus reports from Houston, Mexico, still has plenty of oil, but internal politics prevent the investment needed to develop the resources.

At the close of President Bush’s visit to Mexico two weeks ago, a Mexican reporter asked if the two men had discussed the issue of oil. President Bush, for his part, said oil had not been a topic of discussion since energy is a Mexican domestic issue, not a bilateral issue. President Calderon repeated his oft-stated position on energy reform. read more

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Borneo Bulletin: Brunei Shell Petroleum Co unveils fleet of Sikorsky 92As

By Liza Mohd
 
Brunei Shell Petroleum Co Sdn Bhd (BSP) has marked a milestone in the history of its aviation department with the transition of its helicopter fleet from Sikorsky S61N to the Sikorsky S92A. This year also marks the 40th year of operations using the S61N helicopters.

Present as the guest of honour to unveil a fleet of three Sikorsky S92A at Anduki Airfield in Seria yesterday was Minister of Energy at the Prime Minister’s Office, Pehin Dato Seri Setia Hj Yahya Dato Paduka Hj Bakar. read more

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The Spectator: The case for going Dutch

Published: Wednesday 28th March 2007  

My paternal ancestors were Flemish silkweavers, but they had already migrated over here and set up shop in Norwich some time before the foundation by royal decree, in 1824, of Nederlandsche Handel-Maatschappij, the oldest forerunner of the Dutch banking group ABN Amro.

Nevertheless I’d like to think I might have had a distant cousin who was an early customer there – and regular readers will already know that I have a rather complicated two-generation relationship with Barclays Bank. For these tribal reasons, rather than analytical ones, I found myself inclined to join the minority of City commentators in favour of the proposed merger between Barclays and ABN Amro, which would create the world’s fifth largest international bank. On closer examination, the analytical reasons stack up as well. read more

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Bloomberg: Total Refinery Among Six Hit by Marseille Port-Workers Strike

By Tara Patel

March 27 (Bloomberg) — A Total SA refinery is among six whose operations have been hit by a two-week strike at the port of Marseilles that threatens to create fuel shortages at service stations in France.

Total, Europe’s third-largest oil company, said it has cut output by about a third at the Feyzin refinery near Lyon because of disruption to crude-oil deliveries. As well as the six in France, refineries in Germany and Switzerland are also affected, said Jean-Francois Cousinie, a regional director of the French Union of Petroleum Industries. He didn’t name them. read more

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The Daily Sentinel (Colorado): River district urges planning for drier future

EXTRACT: There’s also the effect of energy development on the Colorado River Basin to consider, an issue some roundtable members found frustrating Monday because Royal Dutch Shell and other companies researching oil shale here have not divulged how much water in situ oil shale extraction will consume.

By BOBBY MAGILL
Tuesday, March 27, 2007

GLENWOOD SPRINGS —  A call on the Colorado River could be decades away, but with less water forecast to flow in the river in the coming years, cities and towns on the Western Slope should plan for water shortages anyway —  especially if they have junior water rights. read more

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Fort Saskatchewan Record (Canada): Shell Scotford continues rapid expansion

Production to be boosted to 700,000 barrels per day when complete

by Andrew Thompson
Wednesday March 28, 2007

Construction on a $6 billion second phase is just starting up and Shell is already planning future expansion of their Scotford Upgrader east of Fort Saskatchewan.

Shell has announced plans for four future expansions that would boost production to 700,000 barrels of bitumen per day. The upgrader currently refines about 190,000 barrels a day. The current expansion is expected to raise that to about 300,000 barrels a day when it’s finished in 2010. 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.

Anarkismo.net: Shell HQ occupied in Dublin to protest give away of natural resources

By Joe – WSM – personal capacity Tuesday, Mar 27 2007, 11:24am

Shells HQ on Leeson street in Dublin has been occupied by activists protesting the give away of Ireland natural resources to this corporation depriving the health and education system of billions of euro worth of needed funds.

The lobby has been occupied and a banner hung from the roof. The audio file below from indymedia.ie is an interview with a WSM member occupying the lobby.

Shell are also currently involved in constructing a dangerous experimental gas pipeline through the community of Rossport in Co Mayo. Last year it had five locals jailed for 91 days for resisting the pipeline. This is a campaign WSM members are also involved in. 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.

CentreDaily.com: China positioned to tap into Iraqi oil

International companies weigh contracts’ danger against payoff
By Jim Krane – The Associated Press

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — China has sat out the Iraq war, but it could be the first to take advantage when the Iraqi government finishes a law opening up its oil fields to international companies.

The Iraqi oil legislation, expected to be approved by July, will open the door for the government to sign contracts for exploration and production of the country’s vast untapped reserves, a top U.S. priority. But since few Western companies are prepared to send equipment or crews into the war zone, it could take five years or more before they begin extracting big shipments of Iraqi crude. 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.

Denver Post: Abramoff scandal just won’t go away

EXTRACT: Norton, a former Colorado attorney general, resigned from Bush’s Cabinet in 2006. However, there’s never been any evidence that Norton knew that Abramoff or others were using her name to solicit funds from Indian tribes. She now works as a general counsel for oil giant Royal Dutch Shell – part of the same industry that was near and dear to Interior’s heart. Norton was attacked by environmentalists as Interior secretary for her pro-development policies regarding oil and gas, coal and timber. 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.

New York Times: Tough Days to Be a French Oilman

Total Chief Executive

(Total says that its chief executive, Christophe de Margerie above, is not culpable.
Martin Bureau/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images)

Comment on this article received from a Shell Insider: the gas field discovered offshore Qatar in 1971 (see para 7) was discovered and subsequently relinquished by Shell!
              
By CRAIG S. SMITH
Published: March 27, 2007

PARIS, March 26 — Christophe de Margerie, the new chief executive of Total, France’s largest corporation and one of the world’s big energy companies, was formally placed under investigation last week on suspicion of paying bribes to win a huge gas project in Iran. read more

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The Wall Street Journal: Trading Outcry Intensifies: Firms Face More Calls to Cut Ties With Censured Nations

Wall Street Journal Chart

EXTRACT: The growing scrutiny comes amid political and grass-roots pressure on U.S. investors, such as state pension funds, to dump shares of non-U.S. companies with major investments in energy businesses in Iran. Earlier this month, Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida introduced a bill calling for federal pension funds to sell shares of any company with more than $20 million in Iran’s energy sector. Such companies include Royal Dutch Shell PLC, based in the Netherlands; Total SA of France and Russia’s OAO Gazprom. read more

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Financial Times: BP and the crude task of balancing cost and danger

By John Kay
Published: March 26 2007 19:00 | Last updated: March 26 2007 19:00

Last week the US Chemical Safety Board published its review of the fatal explosion at BP’s Texas City oil refinery. The board criticised senior executives of the company for demanding cost reductions at the expense of safety. Chemical plants are, by their nature, full of flammable liquids. Airlines carry their customers in fragile metal boxes at speed and altitude. Pharmaceutical products are effective only because they interfere with our bodies. read more

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Lloyds List: Ex-Shell head raises $1bn equity for Delta

Published: Mar 27, 2007

Royal Dutch Shell’s former upstream chief executive Walter van de Vijver has raised $1bn of private equity funds for his new company Delta Hydrocarbons, writes Martyn Wingrove .

The Dutch executive has finally found a way to return to the industry after being forced to quit Shell three years ago, with chairman Sir Philip Watts, because of the reserves slashing scandal.

Mr van de Vijver has teamed up with Maarten Scholten, former head of mergers and acquisitions at service contractor Schlumberger, to provide management services for mature oil fields. read more

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Financial Times: BP blast probe finds tensions at top

By Sheila McNulty in Houston
Published: March 26 2007 22:04 | Last updated: March 27 2007 02:05

An internal BP investigation into the Texas City refinery explosion found that John Manzoni, the chief executive of refining, should have done a “much deeper dive” into the state of the facility after “clear warning signals” from previous accidents.

The confidential report concludes that Mr Manzoni – who until late last year was regarded as being near the top of the short list to succeed Lord Browne as BP’s chief executive – lacked refining experience and failed to obtain information needed to understand better his most complex and important refining asset and the risk of a big accident. read more

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Daily Telegraph: BP insists: ‘We’re in bidding to win’

President Putin

(Putin: energy-control aim)

By Russell Hotten
Last Updated: 7:09am BST 27/03/2007

Only two bidders are likely to be in today’s auction in Moscow for the assets of oil company Yukos, fuelling a belief that the sale is being stage-managed.

TNK-BP and Rosneft were the only firms to register for the auction by the deadline, according to a statement from Yukos’s receiver.

It has been claimed that TNK-BP, a joint venture in which the UK’s BP owns 50pc, have agreed to enter the auction to lend the process credibility and does not really want the assets. TNK-BP denies this, saying that it is “bidding to win”. read more

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THISDAY ONLINE: FG Places Security Alert on Shell MD, Others

From Funso Muraina in Abuja, 03.27.2007
Toxic Waste

The Federal Government has directed security agencies to place the 21 persons accused of transporting toxic waste allegedly on the directive of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) under security surveillance, pending the commencement of their trial.

Specifically, the Federal Government directed the Police to be vigilant on the accused persons so as to facilitate easy access to them whenever the Police would be asked to produce them in court. read more

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Reuters: UPDATE 1-Shell resumes oil output after Nigerian spill

Mon Mar 26, 2007 10:22 AM BST

LAGOS, March 26 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile , Research) has resumed pumping crude oil through a 187,000 barrel per day pipeline that was closed on March 4 due to a spill, a spokesman said.

Repairs to the pipeline that feeds the Bonny export terminal were completed last Thursday and output from the flow stations feeding the trunk line is climbing steadily.

“The flow stations have reopened and production is ramping up,” a spokesman said. read more

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MarketWatch: Shell Nigeria restores oil flow through Nembe Creek pipeline

By Vincent Nwanma
Last Update: 5:55 AM ET Mar 26, 2007

LAGOS (MarketWatch) — Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria, a unit of Royal Dutch Shell PLC has resumed pumping of crude oil through its Nembe Creek Trunk Pipeline, where a spill led to a shut-in of 187,000 barrels a day, a spokesman said Monday.

However, the Nigerian government has sued the oil company for alleged violation of nuclear safety and radiation law, according to media reports Monday.

“We have resumed pumping, but I cannot say how much it is now,” Bisi Ojediran said. “Normally, production will ramp up,” he said. read more

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Ananova: Iran Tensions Spike Oil Price Again

The price of crude oil has gone up to its highest level so far in 2007 amid the heightened tensions surrounding Iran.

It is pushing towards $64 a barrel in New York – and signs are it will increase even further.

The problem surrounds Tehran’s refusal to halt its nuclear programme despite the sanctions brought in by the UN.

The latest developments have renewed market concerns that the world’s fourth-largest oil exporter could one day cut its exports in retaliation.

Iran’s capture of 15 British naval personnel in the Gulf last week has also heightened worries. read more

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iol.co.za: Two hostages freed in Nigeria

March 26 2007 at 12:57AM 
 
Lagos – Two hostages, one Lebanese and the other Indian, were released on Sunday after they were abducted two days ago in Nigeria’s oil-producing delta region, local authorities said.

The two construction workers, employed by Nigerian firm Setraco, were taken at gunpoint from their workplace near the city of Warri on Friday.

“All the waterways were blocked so they had no way to move further into the creeks, so they were released,” said Brigadier General Alfred Ilogho, who heads a military task force in the area. read more

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UpstreamOnline: CNPC to double Iran budget

By Upstream staff

China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) will double its spending on an ageing Iranian oilfield and aims to start drilling this year, an industry official said today.

CNPC recently renegotiated terms with the National Iranian Oil Company and raised its investment to about $150 million to produce oil from the Masjed-i-Suleiman field, an official familiar with the project told Reuters.

The service contract was initially signed in 2004.

Tehran, under increasing US pressure over its atomic programme, is lining up oil and gas deals with international companies including Chinese state players, Royal Dutch/Shell and Spain’s Repsol . read more

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Irish Times: Intrigue in Russia as BP signals intent to grab slice of oil assets

Conor Sweeney in Moscow
Published: Mar 26, 2007

Kremlin intrigue shrouds tomorrow’s auction of controversial Russian oil assets, which has dragged BP deep into the country’s complex energy politics.

Although anticipated to be little more than a forced auction, the surprise bid for one of the remaining crown jewels in the bankrupt oil giant Yukos may at last be attracting international interest.

At least that’s the impression BP wishes to portray, after announcing it will compete through its Moscow-based subsidiary TNK-BP with the Kremlin- controlled Rosneft for the 9.44 per cent stake in Rosneft, which Yukos had once controlled. read more

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Irish Times: EPA sets date for Corrib terminal oral hearing

Lorna Siggins, Marine Correspondent
Published: Mar 26, 2007

The Environmental Protection Agency’s oral hearing into its licensing of the Corrib gas terminal has been set for April 16th.

The hearing will be held by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) staff in the Broadhaven Bay Hotel, Belmullet, following 12 submissions in relation to its preliminary licensing of the project.

Corrib’s lead developer, Shell E&P Ireland, An Taisce, local priest Fr Michael Nallen, the Erris Inshore Fishermen’s Association and individual members of the Shell to Sea campaign were among the 12 appellants, following the Environment Protection Agency’s issuing of preliminary integrated pollution prevention and control (IPPC) approval in January this year. read more

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Irish Independent: ‘The issue over whether to support the Rossport Five or Shell has divided the county…’

Headline: O’Mahony learns to play political game . . . but manages to keep his eye on the ball

Published: Mar 26, 2007
Extracts from the article

JOHN O’Mahony is on a double mission – to recapture the All Ireland title for Mayo and to win a third seat in the county for Fine Gael.

O’Mahony is looking for votes in a constituency which already boasts five strong sitting TDs – Independent Jerry Cowley, Independent Beverly Cooper Flynn, Fianna Fail’s John Carty and Fine Gael’s Enda Kenny and Michael Ring. All of them are experienced politicians, but O’Mahony said he had his own strengths. read more

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