Royal Dutch Shell Group .com Rotating Header Image

May 14th, 2007:

The Guardian: Iraq’s oil wealth is being stolen: Today, as Shell holds its AGM in London…

Tuesday May 15, 2007

The war in Iraq has brought enormous suffering to the Iraqi people, with an estimated 655,000 Iraqis killed and millions more displaced. Even so, some companies – such as Shell – are hoping to profit from this suffering. Indeed, since March 2003, Shell has been working closely with the occupying powers to create a framework that will allow multinational companies to take control of Iraq’s oil.

Thus, for example, British officials advised the International Tax and Investment Centre – a lobby group working on behalf of BP, Shell, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Total and ENI – on their strategy for influencing the Iraqi government, formally sent ITIC’s document to the Iraqi finance minister, and helped arrange a meeting at which Shell managers met ministers and officials. 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: RBS consortium says funds in place to buy Dutch bank

· Suitors say Merrill Lynch will underwrite £35bn
· ABN Amro chief pulls out from joining Shell board

Jill Treanor
Tuesday May 15, 2007

The chief executive of ABN Amro, the Dutch bank embroiled in the world’s biggest banking takeover, has rejected a seat on the board of oil company Shell to concentrate on the £49bn battle for the Netherlands’ second largest bank.

Rijkman Groenink’s name will be withdrawn from the agenda at the Anglo-Dutch oil group’s annual meeting today where protesters are expected to accuse the company of trying to influence Iraqi oil policy. 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: RBS consortium says funds in place to buy Dutch bank

· Suitors say Merrill Lynch will underwrite £35bn
· ABN Amro chief pulls out from joining Shell board

Jill Treanor
Tuesday May 15, 2007

The chief executive of ABN Amro, the Dutch bank embroiled in the world’s biggest banking takeover, has rejected a seat on the board of oil company Shell to concentrate on the £49bn battle for the Netherlands’ second largest bank.

Rijkman Groenink’s name will be withdrawn from the agenda at the Anglo-Dutch oil group’s annual meeting today where protesters are expected to accuse the company of trying to influence Iraqi oil policy. 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: ABN boss pulls out of Shell

By Richard Blackden, Online City Editor

ABN Amro’s beleaguered chief executive Rikjman Groenink has withdrawn his nomination for a seat on the board of oil giant Royal Dutch Shell in order to devote his attention to the sale of the Dutch bank.

Shell said today that Mr Groenink wants to “fully dedicate his attention to ABN Amro, given the current corporate activities around the company.”

advertisement
Mr Groenink has infuriated many of ABN Amro’s shareholders by recommending a takeover by Barclays, which values the Dutch bank at a lower price than a rival bid from a consortium led by Royal Bank of Scotland. 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: Banks are accused of trying to play both sides in ABN battle

EXTRACT: Rijkman Groenink, the ABN chief executive, bowed to shareholder pressure and pulled out of plans to join the board of Shell as a nonexecutive director. ABP, the Dutch pension fund, had threatened to vote against Mr Groenink at the Shell shareholders meeting today, arguing that he needed to devote 100 per cent of his time to ABN at present.

May 15, 2007
Patrick Hosking, Banking and Finance Editor

A row erupted yesterday after banks advising ABN Amro were accused of trying to play both sides of the takeover battle by offering to help to finance the Royal Bank of Scotland-led consortium bid for the Dutch bank. 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.

Huliq – Breaking News: Pipex in a pickle: David Hasselhoff drunken antics last straw for $1 billion sale of UK ISP

EXTRACT: It turns out that a 90 year old British army veteran Alfred Donovan acquired the domain name www.pipextelecommunicationsplc.com a year ago.

THE ATICLE

At the worst possible time, with UK broadband and web hosting company Pipex up for sale, David Hasselhoff, the celebrity fronting its TV advertising campaign is on YouTube drunk, the ISP has been hit by a deluge of complaints by disgruntled clients and is embroiled in a dispute over its claimed intellectual property likely to create more uncertainty and negative publicity. 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.

NBC TODAYShow.com: Shell exec: Oil prices could continue to rise

John Hofmeister, President of Shell Oil Company, talks with TODAY anchor Meredith Vieira about rising gas prices.

By Mike Celizic
TODAYShow.com contributor
Updated: 3:27 p.m. ET May 14, 2007

Unless Congress allows expanded drilling on the outer continental shelf of the United States, fuel prices are going to continue to increase, the head of the Shell Oil Company told TODAY.

“If we don’t bring more oil and gas into the system we’re going to have to pay more and more and more,” Shell President John Hofmeister told TODAY host Meredith Vieira. “I’d hate to see prices double and triple what they are today because we failed to explore for more gas and oil.” 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 Scotsman: NATO eyes naval patrols to secure oil facilities

By Tom Bergin

LONDON (Reuters) – NATO is talking to oil and gas producing companies and countries about how it could help combat security threats to energy infrastructure, a senior NATO official said on Monday.

Jamie Shea, Director of Policy Planning in the Private Office of the NATO Secretary General, said the likely measures would involve providing sea-borne rapid reaction forces to combat attacks on facilities, hostage taking and piracy in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

“In NATO, we are looking very actively at using our maritime resources … to see how we can link up with oil companies,” Shea told a conference in London. 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: Crude Oil Is Steady Amid Signs Demand by Refineries Will Jump

By Mark Shenk

May 14 (Bloomberg) — Crude oil was little changed amid speculation that consumption will increase as refiners boost the production of gasoline and other fuels.

A government report will show that U.S. refineries raised operating rates for a third week, according to a Bloomberg News survey. Refiners upgrade units before the summer months when gasoline consumption peaks. Prices also rose after the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta said it plans to attack pipelines this week in Nigeria’s oil-producing region. 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.

London Evening Standard: ABN chief ditches plan to join Shell board

14 May 2007

The embattled chief executive of ABN Amro, Rijkman Groenink, has bowed to shareholder pressure and scrapped plans to join the board of Royal Dutch Shell as a non-executive director.
 
In a terse statement today the oil giant said Groenink had ‘requested the withdrawal of his nomination at this time’ because he wants to ‘fully dedicate his attention to ABN Amro’.

The Dutch state pension fund ABP had threatened to vote against Groenink’s Shell appointment because of the way he has handled the rival takeover bids for ABN. 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.

Times Online: Comment: Shell shock

May 14, 2007
Miles Costello

Another slap in the face for Rijkman Groenink, currently hanging on by his fingernails at ABN Amro as major Dutch shareholders call for this head.

Being forced to dispense with a lucrative board seat at Shell, just 24 hours before some investors were due to vote against it, should please those who have been highly critical of his handling of the day job — the proposed takeover and break up of one the Netherlands’ two top banks.

The first slap came from the courts, which ordered the controversial sale of LaSalle to Bank of America be put to a shareholder vote. Losing on that issue next month could well be the third strike. And even by gentlemanly Dutch standards, means you’re out. 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.

ShellNews.net: Are these astonishing allegations about the Sakhalin-2 project true or false?

By Alfred Donovan

Monday 14 May 2007

The following Royal Dutch Shell Directors and officials were given advance sight of the article below and have chosen not to comment or seek injunctive legal proceedings: Shell CEO Jeroen van der Veer, Malcolm Brinded (Executive Director of Shell EP), Keith Ruddock (General Counsel Shell EP), Richard Wiseman (General Counsel Shell International Ltd), Michiel Brandjes (RDS Plc Company Secretary) and last, but not least, Jorma Ollila, Chairman of Royal Dutch Shell plc. 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 offers deepest apologies to Shell insiders about alleged ‘planted questions’

By John Donovan

The following Royal Dutch Shell Directors and officials were given advance sight of the article below and have chosen not to comment: Shell CEO Jeroen van der Veer, Malcolm Brinded, Executive Director of Shell EP, Keith Ruddock (General Counsel Shell EP), Richard Wiseman, General Counsel of Shell International Ltd and last, but not least, Jorma Ollila, Chairman of Royal Dutch Shell plc.

THE ARTICLE

On Wednesday 9 May 2007, FT.com published a Question & Answer session with Royal Dutch Shell CEO, Jeroen van der Veer. FT readers had been invited over several days to submit questions on the subject of Energy vs environment for Mr Van der Veer to answer. 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.

ShellNews.net: Comment by Paddy Briggs on Sweeney’s letter to the FT: Trading is just one way to tackle climate change

Former Shell Executive, Paddy Briggs

I thought of writing a rebuttal to Sweeney’s nonsense but find that it is well done here:

http://risingtide.org.uk/resources/factsheets/carbontrading

take a look

Paddy

Paddy Briggs worked for Shell for 37 years during the last fifteen of which he was responsible for Brand management in a number of appointments. He was the winner of the “Shell/Economist” writing prize (internal) in 2001. Paddy retired from Shell in 2002 to form the brand consultancy BrandAware ™ and to write and speak on brand and reputation matters. 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.

CNN.com: Gunmen snatch oil worker en route to work

May 14, 2007 PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria (AP) — Six gunmen wearing military fatigues seized a Nigerian staff member of the Italian oil company Agip on Monday in Nigeria’s southern petroleum region, police said.

The assailants grabbed the human resources manager for Agip, a subsidiary of Italian oil giant Eni SpA, as he drove to work, said Rivers state police spokeswoman Irejua Barasua.

Agip had no immediate official comment.

The incident is the latest in a string of bombings and kidnappings against the petroleum industry across the volatile Niger Delta region where the crude is pumped in Africa’s oil giant. 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: AP Moller Maersk North Sea oil, gas production falls yr-on-yr in April

05.14.07, 6:55 AM ET   

COPENHAGEN (Thomson Financial) – AP Moller Maersk said oil production at its partly owned Dansk Undergrunds Consortium (DUC)’s 14 oil fields in the North Sea totalled 275,700 barrels per day during April, down 7 pct from a year earlier.

The production of gas reached 495 mln cubic metres, down 42 pct from a year earlier.

AP Moller Maersk owns 39 pct of DUC while Royal Dutch Shell (nyse: RDSA – news – people ) and Chevron (nyse: CVX – news – people ) hold respectively 46 pct and 15 pct of the consortium. 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 activist to attend Shell agm

Lorna Siggins, Marine Correspondent
Published: May 14, 2007

North Mayo farmer Willie Corduff, Ireland’s first winner of the international Goldman Environmental Award, plans to attend Royal Dutch Shell plc’s annual general meeting in Holland tomorrow.

Mr Corduff, who was jailed for 94 days in 2005 over his opposition to the Corrib gas pipeline, is one of five members of the Shell to Sea campaign travelling as shareholders to Royal Dutch Shell headquarters in The Hague.

He says he intends to raise concerns at the meeting over Shell’s involvement in the Corrib gas project in Mayo, and will speak as a recent winner of the Goldman Environmental Award. 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: ABN AMRO’s Groenink won’t sit on Shell board

Mon May 14, 2007 2:44AM EDT

AMSTERDAM, May 14 (Reuters) – Anglo-Dutch oil giant Royal Dutch Shell Plc.  said on Monday that ABN AMRO Chief Executive Rijkman Groenink has asked for his nomination to Shell’s supervisory board to be withdrawn.

The oil company said it will accept his request and remove the resolution from its list of proposals for an annual shareholders meeting to be held on Tuesday.

“The reason for his decision is that he wants to fully dedicate his attention to ABN AMRO, given the current corporate activities around the company,” Shell said in a statement. 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: Trading is just one way to tackle climate change

By Graeme Sweeney
Published: May 14 2007 03:00 | Last updated: May 14 2007 03:00

From Mr Graeme Sweeney.

Sir, You argue that taxes are a better way to reduce carbon emissions than trading schemes (“Carbon markets create a muddle”, editorial April 26). That’s too narrow-minded. Trading is one of a number of important tools that will be necessary to address climate change.

The central objective of climate change policy should be to reduce CO2 emissions by encouraging investment in technologies that lower emissions. Taxation does not do this. It is a blunt instrument to achieve an environmental objective. Taxation channels capital away from industries that are capable of delivering emissions-reduction projects and gives it to governments with no guarantee that they will spend it effectively. Trading schemes, by contrast, are a much sharper instrument. They give business incentives to improve energy efficiency and develop new technology. Unlike some incentive systems, they do so without using public funds. 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: Big oil groups shun Nigeria’s latest auction

EXTRACT: Two blocks taken away last year from Royal Dutch Shell, Nigeria’s largest producer, were offered up in this round as four blocks. But the winners can be declared only if a legal challenge brought by Shell is dismissed in court this week.

THE ARTICLE

By Dino Mahtani in Lagos
Published: May 14 2007 03:00 | Last updated: May 14 2007 03:00

Nigeria’s outgoing government has failed to raise interest from big oil companies in its latest oil licence auction, with industry executives fearful of contracts being revoked after the new government is sworn 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.

The Wall Street Journal: THE JOURNAL REPORT: TECHNOLOGY

Wall Street Journal Chart

EXTRACT: At oil giant Royal Dutch Shell PLC, the main issue faced by intranet manager Andrew Fix was not that information was missing, but that there was simply too much of it. With more than 140,000 users, the things people needed to find had become scattered across too many separate sites and lost among all the duplicated or out-of-date information. Even something as simple as lists of preferred hotels for traveling executives became impossible to find.His solution was to centralize, consolidating the separate country sites into regional ones and then finally into a single global intranet using a single software program, Intranet Dashboard, provided by Adweb Agency Pty. Ltd. of Melbourne, Australia. 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 New York Times: Renewed Violence Limits Oil Production in Nigerian Region

By JAD MOUAWAD
Published: May 14, 2007

The violence that has gripped Nigeria’s main oil region for the last year is again on the rise after weeks of an uneasy truce.

Tensions have flared up in the Niger Delta, the site of much of the country’s oil production, after deeply flawed presidential elections last month. Dozens of foreign oil workers have since been kidnapped, at least three pipelines blown up, several supply vessels attacked and oil production curtailed.

Chevron, one of the biggest producers in Nigeria, has begun evacuating hundreds of workers and suspending nonessential offshore activities in the after four workers were seized from a construction vessel last week. The company called the evacuations “a precautionary measure.” 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.

Todays Zaman: Shell praises Turkey’s stability, will invest more

Vice President of Shell Retail for Central and Southern Europe Istvan Kapitany said yesterday that Turkey’s recent economic performance has turned the country into a shining star in its region.
 
 “No investor can disregard this,” he said, adding that success will continue in the long run. Kapitany was speaking to Today’s Zaman at Shell’s Eco-Marathon contest held at France’s Nogaro race circuit. “Shell’s investments in Turkey will continue at an increasing pace,” he said. Following their merger with Turkish oil distributor Turcas last year, Shell stations in Turkey had increased by 670, Kapitany noted. He went on to say: “Our partnership is going extremely well. We are now getting perfect results.”
 
14.05.2007
 
Melik Duvaklı  Nogaro 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.

Lankaeverything.com: Sri Lanka’s Shell unit losses mount

LBO 14-05-2007

Anglo-Dutch gas firm Shell is in “serious dialogue” with the Sri Lankan government after losses ballooned to millions of dollars as authorities resist calls for “sustainable” price increase, officials said.

Sri Lanka’s biggest gas supplier is unable to wipe the red ink off its books as cooking gas prices are currently fixed at 960 rupees (8.89 dollars) for a 12.5 kilo cylinder in line with the government’s price control mechanism.

“Since the price control regime was introduced in 2003, we have lost 767 million rupees (7.6 million dollars) to date,” Shell’s Sri Lankan country manager, Hassan Madani told reporters. 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.