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October 23rd, 2007:

BBC News: Children kidnapped in Niger Delta

Monday, 22 October 2007, 16:51 GMT 17:51 UK 

Two children, aged five and six, have become the latest victims of kidnapping by gunmen in Nigeria’s Delta region.

A security source said the two are the children of employees of the French energy group, Total, who were snatched on the way to school in Port Harcourt.

Young children have become the targets for militants in the oil-rich Niger Delta region in recent months.

Seven oil workers, including three foreigners, who were seized from an oil rig on Sunday, were freed on Monday. 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: Profit Declines Sharply at BP

By JULIA WERDIGIER
Published: October 24, 2007

LONDON, Oct. 23 — BP, the British oil company, said today that its third-quarter net income fell 29 percent from the period a year earlier as lower refining margins and gas prices were exacerbated by disruptions at some refineries.

Net profit fell to $4.41 billion, or 23 cents a share, in the quarter from $6.23 billion, or 31 cents a share, a year earlier, but it still beat analysts expectations, which were softened when the new chief executive, Tony Hayward, in a document leaked in September said that operational performance in the third quarter was “dreadful.” 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.

Ogoni activists demand creation of Ogoni state in Nigeria

By John Donovan

The National Union of Ogoni Students (NUOS International) USA, is petitioning for the creation of an Ogoni state in Nigeria. Itis an independent non-profit organisation that functions as the students unit of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP).

Royal Dutch Shell in particular has exploited and polluted Ogoniland for decades, extracting billions of dollars in hydrocarbon revenues, while leaving the local population to survive in abject poverty.

In a leaked internal report, Shell admitted that its activities have fuelled corruption and violence in Nigeria. Other oil companies have also acted in a ruthless manner. 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.

Intercepting job applications and business proposals meant for Shell

By John Donovan

The following comment was posted on the “Live Chat” facility of Royaldutchshellplc.com on 23 October 2007

Guest 640: Mr Donovan you falsely claim to be intercepting job applications and business proposals meant for Shell. I know as a Shell employee that this would be a breach of privacy laws and we would have obtained an immediate injunction to stop you. We all know that you would say or publish anything to embarrass us. When you make FALSE claims you destroy your credibility.

The comments relate to the article “The Internet humiliation 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.

Yahoo! News: Troubled energy giant BP rocked by profits slump

By Roland Jackson Tue Oct 23, 7:24 AM ET

LONDON (AFP) – British energy giant BP, reeling from fatal safety errors and a boardroom scandal, said Tuesday that third-quarter profits slumped owing to lower output, weak US gas prices and refinery outages.

Net profit on a replacement cost basis plunged 44.5 percent from a year earlier to 3.87 billion dollars (2.72 billion euros) in the three months to September.

The replacement cost figure, which excludes the effect of changes in the value of oil and gas inventories, is closely watched by the market. 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 says personnel evactuated after attack at EA Field in Nigeria

By Angela Henshall
Last Update: 9:05 AM ET Oct 23, 2007

LONDON (MarketWatch) — All personnel working on Royal Dutch Shell’s (RDSB.LN) EA Field in the Western Delta area of Nigeria have been evacuated after an attack on the facility Saturday, a spokesman for the company said Tuesday.

“Yes, we have evacuated all staff,” said Shell spokesman Rainer Winzenried.

Seven workers were kidnapped from the EA FPSO, floating, production, storage and offloading vessel at the weekend after it was attacked by a group of men in speedboats.
Four Nigerians in addition to one British worker, a Croatian and one South African were taken and all subsequently released. 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 mulls investment in Dutch refinery

Tue Oct 23, 2007 1:41pm BST

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile, Research) is planning to invest 1 billion euros (696 million pounds) in its Dutch Pernis refinery, Europe’s biggest, over the next five to seven years, a spokesman for the oil major said on Tuesday.

“There are plans for a 1 billion (euro) investment for the next five to seven years but it’s not all firm yet,” the spokesman said, adding that the planned investments were partly aimed at improving the refinery’s reliability. 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 Shuffling Ethiopia Management; Has No Plans to Withdraw

 By Jason McLure

Oct. 23 (Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc said it has no plans to sell its assets and withdraw from Ethiopia.

The company has informed local staff that they will fall under “different Shell management, but will still remain part of Shell Oil Products Africa,” the company said in an e-mailed statement today in the capital, Addis Ababa.

Addis Fortune reported yesterday that Shell planned to sell its gas stations and distribution properties in Ethiopia and withdraw from the country. 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: Asian Fuel Oil Climbs to a Record; BP Buys a Cargo (Update1)

By Sophie Tan

Oct. 23 (Bloomberg) — Asian benchmark 180-centistoke fuel oil gained $6 a metric ton, or 1.1 percent, to a record $458 in Singapore, Asia’s biggest oil-trading center, according Bloomberg data. BP Plc bought a cargo for mid-November loading.

The price of 380-centistoke fuel oil, mainly used as marine fuel, climbed $6.50, or 1.5 percent, to an all-time high of $447 a ton. Royal Dutch Shell Plc and PetroChina Co. bought a cargo each.

Dubai crude for December delivery rose 40 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $78.44 a barrel, according to Bloomberg data. Prices have risen 38 percent this year. 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 Shuts MTBE Unit at Deer Park Refinery Until January

By Sophie Tan

Oct. 23 (Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Europe’s largest publicly traded oil company, shut a unit at its Deer Park, Texas, refinery, according to a filing with state regulators.

Shell said flaring, or burning of chemicals into the air, from the methyl tertiary butyl ether unit started on Oct. 22 and will be completed by Jan. 19, according to the report.

MTBE is a methanol based, high octane, low volatility, oxygenated fuel component made by combining alcohol with isobutylene from oil refineries. 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 Third-Quarter Profit Probably Fell, Analysts Say (Table)

By Fred Pals

Oct. 23 (Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Europe’s largest oil company, is expected to report profit fell from a year earlier, a survey of analysts shows.

Shell’s third-quarter profit, excluding one-time items and gains or losses from inventories, probably slid 21 percent to $5.58 billion, from $7.03 billion a year earlier, according to the median estimate of 11 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Net income was $5.94 billion in the same quarter of 2006.

The Hague-based Shell reports earnings on Oct. 25 at 7 a.m. London time. Shell spokesman Wim van de Wiel said Oct. 18 that the average third-quarter estimate of profit, excluding inventories and one-time items, from analysts who gave forecasts to the company was $5.64 billion. 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.

USA TODAY: Securities-fraud suits go global

USA Today image 

Foreign firms are “no more immune to fraud” than U.S. companies, says Stuart Grant of Wilmington, Del.-based law firm Grant & Eisenhofer. 

By William D. Bretzger for USA TODAY 

EXTRACT: In a groundbreaking class-action case last spring, the Grant & Eisenhofer law firm of Wilmington, Del., represented 90 pension and investment funds and other foreign shareholders who settled for $450 millionafter accusing Royal Dutch Shell of inflating its oil and gas reserves from 1997 to 2003.  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: Oil and Iran (*business partner of Royal Dutch Shell)

Financial Times Graphic

Published: October 22 2007 07:42 | Last updated: October 22 2007 19:52

The prospect of Turkish tanks rolling into northern Iraq – current oil exports: virtually zero – was enough to send crude prices soaring. So what would happen if bombs started dropping on Iran, the world’s fourth largest exporter?

The debate in Washington remains unresolved but the US has clearly made preparations for a potential strike on Iran’s nuclear programme. A wider attack on its oil facilities is highly unlikely, as is an Iranian response of cutting off supplies. Even if this occurred, Iran’s net exports of 2.5m barrels a day could, in theory, be covered by spare capacity in Saudi Arabia and the world’s 4bn barrels of commercial and strategic stocks. 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: BP Net Falls on Lower Refining Earnings, Gas Prices (Update1)

By Fred Pals and Eduard Gismatullin

Oct. 23 (Bloomberg) — BP Plc, Europe’s second-biggest oil company, said profit declined 29 percent in the third quarter because of lower refining earnings and natural-gas prices.

Net income fell to $4.41 billion from $6.23 billion in the year-earlier period, the London-based company said today in a statement distributed by the Regulatory News Service. Excluding one-time items and changes in inventories, profit beat analysts’ estimates.

Refining margins dropped 5.2 percent as gasoline demand weakened with the end of the U.S. summer driving season, and natural gas prices slid 6.4 percent. BP, the first of the world’s five largest oil companies to report, is cutting jobs and breaking up a division to restore investor confidence after Chief Executive Officer Tony Hayward called the third quarter “dreadful.” 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: Crude Falls on Stronger Dollar, Economic Worries

Wall Street Journal Chart

November Contract
Slips 1.2% to $87.56;
Natural Gas Declines
By ELIZABETH LANDAU
October 23, 2007; Page C11

Crude-oil futures fell on the final day of the November contract as the dollar strengthened and traders considered the potential for an economic slowdown. Reports that a Kurdish rebel group would declare a cease-fire with Turkey also weighed on prices.

Light, sweet crude for November delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell $1.04, or 1.2%, to $87.56 a barrel. The December contract, now the front-month contract, fell 93 cents, or 1.1%, to $86.02 a barrel. 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: Asia Keeps Pressuring Oil Prices

Wall Street Journal Chart

Economic Growth Offsets
Efforts to Curb Demand;
Ambivalence on Ethanol
By PATRICK BARTA
October 23, 2007; Page A2

Asia’s fast-growing economies have made some progress in addressing their seemingly insatiable demand for oil, but they continue to fall far short of the cuts needed to significantly reduce pressure on global supplies.

Galloping growth in Asia, led by China, was one of the key reasons global oil prices started shooting up in 2004. China’s economy was racing ahead after years of relative global insignificance, ignited by a spurt in new industrial output and a wave of domestic consumption of items, from cars to air conditioners, that pushed energy demand dramatically higher. 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: Kazakhs Seek Bigger Slice

Wall Street Journal Chart

Energy Minister
Cites Costly Delays
At Kashagan Field
By GUY CHAZAN in London and GABRIEL KAHN in Rome
October 23, 2007; Page A14

Foreign investors developing one of the world’s biggest oil fields could see their stakes in the venture whittled down as Kazakhstan pushes to expand the state oil company’s role in the project.

Kazakhstan’s energy minister, Sauat Mynbayev, said in an interview that the government is negotiating a bigger stake for state energy giant JSC NC KazMunaiGaz in the consortium developing Kashagan, a Caspian Sea oil field that is the world’s largest outside the Middle East. 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.