July 9th, 2007:

Tuesday, July 10, 2007. Issue 3695. Page 1.
By Anatoly Medetsky
Staff Writer

Shell and Rosneft will look at joint oil projects in Russia and elsewhere in a potentially lucrative deal that could give the European energy major a chance to widen its access to Russian reserves and shore up its position in the country.

The deal, announced Monday, could also help Rosneft, burdened with heavy debt after a series of acquisitions earlier this year, secure a foreign partner to finance greenfield development. read more

Jack Reardon, guest columnist  —  7/09/2007 11:18 am

A recent editorial in The Capital Times congratulated Gov. Jim Doyle for challenging the oil industry’s annual rip-off of raising prices at the start of the summer driving season.

Consumers are indeed mad at this “predictable price-gouging ritual” that fattens oil company profits. We want someone to blame, so why not blame the oil companies?

The Capital Times also lauded Doyle for “understanding that government has a right and a responsibility to force energy firms to become what they are not: responsible to consumers and to the future.” read more

09 Jul 2007
 
On July 6 2007 Rosneft Open Joint Stock Company (Rosneft) and Royal Dutch Shell plc (Shell) concluded an Agreement on Strategic Cooperation. The agreement was signed in Moscow by Rosneft President Sergey Bogdanchikov and Shell Chief Executive Jeroen van der Veer.
 
The Agreement provides the opportunity for joint implementation of upstream and downstream oil and gas projects. It sets the basic principles of strategic cooperation between the two major international energy companies and lays the foundation for a long-term cooperation between Shell and Rosneft both in Russia and elsewhere. read more

9 July 2007

Dear Friends

The recent heritage listing of a large tract of the Burrup Peninsula by the Federal Government acknowledges the great importance of the rock art for all Australians. Public pressure is working.

But, despite the listing, Woodside continues to move forward with their unnecessary plans to clear more rock art on Site B; currently excluded from heritage protection by the Federal Government. We must maintain pressure on the WA State Government and Woodside to abandon this wrong-headed policy and demand that the Pluto LNG Plant is relocated off the Burrup. read more

By KATHARINE HOURELD 07.09.07, 10:21 AM ET

Gunmen attacked two oil installations in southern Nigeria, kidnapping two senior Nigerian employees of Royal Dutch Shell PLC and two foreigners, security officials and colleagues said Monday.

Late Sunday night, gunmen in speedboats attacked a facility on Calabar River and kidnapped two foreign employees, two security contractors said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk to the press.

Sunday night’s attack coincided with the release of Margaret Hill, a British toddler whose father works for an energy company. The 3-year-old was the first foreign child to be kidnapped in the restive Niger river delta region, which has seen about 150 foreigners seized this year. read more

16:31 | 09/ 07/ 2007 

MOSCOW, July 9 (RIA Novosti) – Russia’s state-controlled oil company Rosneft [RTS: ROSN] said Monday it had signed a strategic partnership agreement with Royal Dutch Shell on the prospective implementation of joint oil and gas projects.

Under the deal signed July 6 in Moscow, Rosneft and Shell plan to carry out joint geological surveys, and produce, refine and sell hydrocarbons. The deal formulates the basic principles for a strategic partnership and creates a basis for the companies’ long-term cooperation in Russia and abroad, Rosneft said. read more

By BENOIT FAUCON
July 9, 2007 8:10 a.m.

LONDON — Royal Dutch Shell Monday said it has signed a cooperation deal with Rosneft for oil and gas production and refining in Russia and abroad.
 
The agreement comes after the recent loss of control of a Sakhalin project by Shell and after similar cooperation deal between BP PLC and OAO Gazprom. It underpins how Russia is still seeking the participation of foreign investors as minority partners in Russia, as well as their help abroad after unwinding deals signed with them in the 1990s. read more

Oh, what a tangled web we weave, When first we practice to deceive!
(Quote from Sir Walter Scott 1771-1832)

The Royal Dutch Shell Group is once again caught deceiving the public.

The Dutch Advertising Standards Authority has ruled that a complaint made by Friends of the Earth Netherlands about a Royal Dutch Shell “green” themed advertising campaign was well founded and that the advertising was misleading i.e. deceptive.

We all live in a world of spin especially in relation to marketing and advertising where things are not always what they appear. I live in the UK. Here the packet size for potato chips (we call them “crisps”) is getting bigger, while the number of potato chips actually inside each packet is getting less. Packets are double the size actually needed. I recently bought a box of chocolates and discovered that the tray containing the chocolates was surrounded by a cardboard construction to make it appear that far more chocolates are inside than was actually the case. Both brands are obviously more interested in fooling the public to sell product than in environmental considerations. read more

Mon Jul 9, 2007 2:32 PM BST

(Adds details, analysts throughout)

By Dmitry Zhdannikov and Tanya Mosolova

MOSCOW, July 9 (Reuters) – Oil major Royal Dutch/Shell on Monday signalled an attempt to rebuild its exposure to Russia, which was badly cut last year, by signing a framework cooperation deal with state-controlled Rosneft.

Shell said it would cooperate with Rosneft, Russia’s largest oil firm, in oil production and refining in Russia and abroad — six months after being forced to cede control of the Sakhalin-2 project to gas monopoly Gazprom. read more

11:37 | 09/ 07/ 2007 

MOSCOW, July 9 (RIA Novosti) – Sakhalin Energy, the operator of the Sakhalin II oil and gas project off Russia’s Pacific Coast, said Monday it had started drilling the first offshore gas wells from the Lunskoye-A platform.

The platform is Russia’s first gas-producing offshore platform located at the Lunskoye gas and condensate field, 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) off northeastern Sakhalin. The platform is designed for year-round operation in harsh weather conditions, and is able to withstand high seismic activity, the company said. read more

By Greg Walters

July 9 (Bloomberg) — OAO Gazprom and Royal Dutch Shell Plc’s Sakhalin-2 project started drilling from Russia’s first offshore natural gas platform.

Project operator Sakhalin Energy Investment Co. began drilling from the Lunskoye-A platform off Sakhalin Island in Russia’s Far East, the company said in an e-mailed statement today. The well is one of two the venture plans to drill this year to start gas production.

Sakhalin Energy, which plans to start Russia’s first exports of liquid natural gas in 2008, last week began testing an LNG plant on Sakhalin. read more

By Steve Newman
Universal Press Syndicate
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 07.09.2007
 
Noise starvation

The critically endangered western gray whale population has abandoned its only known feeding area this summer, and conservationists blame noise pollution from a gas and oil project in the Russian Far East.

The World Wildlife Fund said the construction of an offshore facility at Shell’s Sakhalin-2 project has resulted in a constant, high level of noise. Only about 100 western gray whales remain in the world, and they have historically fed around where the Sakhalin Energy facility is being built. read more

LONDON (Thomson Financial) – Sakhalin Energy said it has started drilling wells at the offshore Lunskoye gas and condensate field in north-eastern Sakhalin island.

The holes will be spudded from the Lunskoye-A platform, which is designed to withstand harsh climate and rough seas, it said.

‘The commencement of drilling of the first wells from Lunskoye-A platform is a major development milestone. Lunskoye-A will provide the main volume of gas for LNG production, opening the new energy markets in Asia-Pacific and North America for Russia,’ said chief executive Ian Craig. read more

· Father of snatched child says no ransom was paid
· Intense security service pressure led to freedom

Sarah Knapton
Monday July 9, 2007

Margaret Hill, the three-year-old British girl abducted by gunmen in southern Nigeria last week, was last night released and returned to her parents. She was unharmed apart from a rash of mosquito bites, and apparently in good spirits as she told reporters on the telephone that she was “fine”.

The little girl, who was seized from a chauffeur-driven car on her way to school last Thursday, was released after Nigerian security services piled pressure on the group holding her, according to her father, Mike Hill. “She’s in a bit of a trance,” he said. “She is covered in mosquito bites. I am going to have to get her to the clinic, because she will need some injections. She’s been in the bush. And I don’t think they fed her very much.” read more

July 9, 2007
Suzy Jagger in New York

Libya has invited international energy companies to bid for 12 onshore and offshore gas drilling permits as part of its drive to boost gas exports.

The National Oil Corporation (NOC), the state-owned Libyan oil group, said yesterday on its website that exploration and production companies had until December 9 to apply.

NOC held presentations to potential partners in Tripoli yesterday and said that it would also discuss the contractual framework and technical summaries of the exploration blocks in a similar presentation next Sunday in London. read more

Published: Jul 09, 2007

In New Zealand, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) said today there had been no fresh news about two kidnapped New Zealanders also employed by Lonestar Drilling. Bruce Klenner, 47, of New Plymouth, and Brent Goddard, 49, of Wellington, were kidnapped along with Mr Lane and the other two workers from Lebanon and Venezuela. An MFAT spokeswoman said today the ministry was in constant contact with Shell and “the various parties involved”, trying to secure the release of the men, but there had so far been no further developments. MFAT has advised New Zealanders against travel to the Niger Delta, citing “extreme risk” to personal safety. NZPA srp read more

Ciaran Hancock
Published: Jul 09, 2007

CSR: The merits of corporate social responsibility have been debated for decades but the concept is becoming popular in corporate Ireland.

Earlier this month, energy giant Shell said it had spent $273 million (201 million) worldwide on CSR in 2006.

Susan Shannon, who heads Shell’s social investment initiatives in Ireland, says independent research it has commissioned recently suggests that trust is gradually being rebuilt after recent low points in public relations over its plans to build a natural gasline in Co Mayo. read more

By Sheila McNulty in Houston and Ed Crooks in London
Published: July 8 2007 20:51 | Last updated: July 8 2007 20:51

BP has agreed to withhold millions of dollars in payments to Lord Browne and John Manzoni until the conclusion of a shareholder lawsuit in Alaska that accuses the outgoing executives of mismanagement.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of BP investors in state court in Alaska, seeks damages from 39 present and past BP managers and directors.

The plaintiffs sought to freeze the funds, fearing they would have no means to attach payments to Lord Browne, BP’s former chief executive, and Mr Manzoni, its departing refining chief, if they were released from liability on leaving the UK oil giant. By agreeing to withhold the payments until the conclusion of the litigation, access to those funds is assured. read more

By Ed Crooks in London
Published: July 8 2007 22:01 | Last updated: July 8 2007 22:01

Gazprom is “very close” to a deal to develop the vast Shtokman gas field in Russia, making a concession to international energy groups by allowing foreign companies to be partners in the project, according to one of the company’s top executives.

Signing a deal to develop one of the world’s biggest gas reserves would be an important success for any of the three groups that have been in talks with Gazprom: Statoil and Norsk Hydro of Norway, which are in the process of merging, Total of France and ConocoPhillips of the US. The cost of the project has been estimated at $20bn-$30bn. read more

By Mangoa Mosota

Kenya Shell has resumed business in Western Kenya after a four-year absence.

The company opened Kisumu retail station last weekend and is planning to open another six in the next one year.

Managing Director Mr Patrick Obath said some of the new stations will be opened in Eldoret and Bungoma. “Our investment in Western Kenya will go hand in hand with the re-branding of BP retail sites to Shell,” said the MD.

He blamed dumping of counterfeit oil products for the closure of Kenya Shell retail outlets in the region four years ago. “There was dumping of export oil that was meant for export. This unfair competition forced us to close in 2003,” said Obath. read more

Monday July 09 2007

A SPECIES of fish which likes to hide away in dark spaces has cost the Shell company over €250,000 by blocking drilling operations at the controversial Corrib gas field, 83 kilometres off the Mayo coast.

Shell E&P Ireland (SEPIL) engineers were baffled when suction piling – drilling by suction – mysteriously failed to achieve the required depths.

The operation was being carried out by an underwater robot which was being used to instal protection covers on the Corrib sub-sea wells. When the suction panel was removed in an expensive operation, the cause of the problem became apparent – a 4ft ling, subsequently nicknamed “Larry” by bemused rig workers. The ling had formed a perfect shut valve on the suction pipe. SEPIL communications manager John Egan explained that the fish had temporarily prevented a 130 tonne structure reaching its design building depth on the sea bed – 350 metres below sea level. read more

Martin Ayankola, Lagos – 09.07.2007

Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) on Friday in Lagos awarded a $530 million engineering contract to the National Engineering and Technical Company Limited (NETCO).

NETCO is a subsidiary company of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

The contract covers a range of activities in support of project portfolios of Shell companies in Nigeria and it is spread over five years with an option of two years.

SPDC’s General Manager, Engineering, Mr. Victor Dania, explained that under the terms of the contract, NETCO would be required to provide detailed engineering and associated studies in support of individual projects that would develop from initial conceptual engineering and provide procurement support thereafter. read more

7/9/2007 

Houston, TX – VetcoGray, a GE Oil & Gas business, is supplying its latest MS-700 system deepwater technology to Shell Group Companies for the deepwater BC-10 project, recently named Parque das Conchas, located in Brazil’s Campos Basin.

The contract with Shell includes the supply of 12 MS-700 slimbore subsea wellhead systems and seven 42-inch liners, with delivery beginning in July of 2007. Once installed, the MS-700 slimbore wellhead systems will enable Shell to drill and complete wells in conjunction with their reduced bore riser and a surface blowout-preventer (BOP), thus exploiting the drilling capabilities of rigs with conventional operating envelopes, typically less than the actual water depth at Parque das Conchas (up to 1930m water depth). read more

By Emma O’Brien

July 9 (Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc has been in contact with the kidnappers of five oil workers in Nigeria, including two New Zealanders, and confirmed that they are alive, New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark said.

Shell has conveyed to the New Zealand government that it has “every reason to believe that the men are alive and well,” Clark told reporters in Wellington today, adding that the oil company was the main point of contact with the kidnappers. read more

Monday, July 9, 2007. Issue 3694. Page 1.
By Miriam Elder
Staff Writer  
 
For several months last year, Shell fought off daily accusations that its construction of the giant Sakhalin-2 oil and gas project was causing unspeakable damage to the land and animals of the far eastern island.

Then, at a Dec. 21 Kremlin ceremony, welcoming Gazprom as a majority shareholder into the foreign-owned project, President Vladimir Putin declared that all of the island’s environmental problems had been resolved. read more

                     NATIONAL UNION OF OGONI STUDENTS
                                          (NUOS INTL.) USA
                         3116 W. DEVON AVE SUITE #204
                                CHICAGO ILLINIOS 60659
               www.nuos-ogoni.org – [email protected] – 773.250.7004

COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT THE END OF THE NATIONAL UNION OF OGONI- STUDENTS’ ANNUAL  CONFERENCE HELD AT UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI, KANSAS CITY, SATURDAY, JULY 7, 2007 read more