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August 1st, 2012:

Shell machine remains stuck in Mayo

COMMENT FROM A REGULAR CONTRIBUTOR:

SHELL MACHINE REMAINS STUCK IN MAYO…

The question surely is whether the Mayo is (S)Hellman’s, and whether Shell has enough demulsifier to disperse it…
 
(Oil mixed with water forms an emulsion which is physically and chemically similar to mayonnaise – think of the off-white globules that are formed by oil slicks)

Efforts to move a jack-knifed 160-ton truck carrying machinery for a controversial gas project are farcical, campaigners have claimed.

As the 40m vehicle continues to block a road in Co Mayo, protesters against Shell’s Corrib scheme said it will take a miracle to move it.

One of the Rossport Five, Willie Corduff, was arrested earlier today during protests over traffic disruption since the truck got stuck near the Glenamoy Bridge in Erris yesterday morning.

Mr Corduff was one of five men who spent 94 days in jail in 2005 after refusing to agree not to protest against the project. 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.

Shell reduces its Arctic drilling ambitions as delays continue

By Laura J. Nelson: August 1, 2012, 4:45 a.m.

Shell has reduced the number of exploratory offshore Arctic wells it plans to drill this year as construction delays continue on a containment barge that must be finished first, the company says.

Weather is also a factor: Shell engineers had hoped to begin drilling in early August, before ice forms in the fall. Arctic drilling is controversial: The bitter cold could hinder cleanup of any spill.

The company had hoped to finish five exploratory wells this year, but now will attempt two: one in the Beaufort Sea northeast of Alaska, and one in the Chukchi Sea between Alaska and Siberia, officials said Tuesday. 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.

At Shell, a Grassroots Effort Aims to Nourish Innovation Via Meditation

COMMENT RECEIVED FROM A SHELL INSIDER

A GAME STOPPER NOT A GAME CHANGER

Hi John,             Was really interested reading one of your new articles, on Mandar Apte and his Game Changer energy program, which was supported by the CEO of Shell to promote innovation in Shell using employees good ideas.

He would be aghast if he knew how the Shell Geelong management have stifled Diana Newman, whose outstanding idea is an industry game changer. Management has used every dirty trick, lies, and burying their heads in the sand.  Such tactics have had the effect in Australia of being a Game Stopper to any other Shell person with a great idea coming forward.

Published: August 01, 2012 in Knowledge@Wharton

Mandar Apte, a chemical engineer, has worked at Shell for 12 years. He is part of the energy giant’s GameChanger program, whose mission is to provide seed funding and guidance to cutting-edge ideas and foster a culture of innovation. Apte is also the founder of a staff-led initiative called Empower, which uses breathing and meditation exercises sourced from the International Association for Human Valuesto nurture personal creativity and inter-personal skills. So far, some 2,000 employees at Shell offices in the U.S., U.K., the Netherlands and the UAE have gone through modules that are part of the Empower program. In a conversation with Knowledge@Wharton, Apte discusses the impact that Empower has had on him and his colleagues and his hopes for its future. 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.

Shell takes key step on scaled-back Alaska drilling

Posted on August 1, 2012 at 12:01 am by Jennifer A. Dlouhy

WASHINGTON _ Shell on Tuesday began preparations to install anchors at the site of one of its planned wells in the Chukchi Sea north of Alaska — a major step toward launching a new era of Arctic oil exploration, even as the company has been forced to scale back its drilling plans.

Delays in construction of an emergency spill containment barge, last-minute problems with an essential air pollution permit and stubborn sea ice still clinging to Alaska’s coast have shortened the company’s drilling window. And now Shell believes just two out of 10 wells planned for the Beaufort and Chukchi seas are likely to be completed 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.

Nigeria’s precarious oil amnesty

1 August 2012

An amnesty for thousands of militants in south-eastern Nigeria has brought relative stability to the region, enabling its huge oil industry to recover but, as the BBC’s Will Ross reports, some are questioning how long the peace can hold.

“If I’d set eyes on you back in those days we would not be talking like this,” says Tobine with a menacing smile. “I would have made a call to find one or two ways to make money out of you.”

Tobine means he would have kidnapped me for ransom. 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.

NGOs seek Sakhalin compensation from Shell, UK banks

Sakhalin production complex: compensation due? (Photocredit) 1 August 2012

Three environmental groups have called on UK banks Barclays, RBS and Standard Chartered to compensate Sakhalin residents for pollution caused by a large oil and gas project that they helped finance.

Oil major Shell, as a part owner of the Sakhalin II project on the Russian Pacific island, is also named in the complaint. It was filed with the UK and Dutch governments on Tuesday and alleges that the companies are in breach of the voluntary OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.

“Shell, RBS, Standard Chartered and Barclays share responsibility for the environmental and community damage caused by the Prigorodnoye Production Complex,” said Doug Norlen, policy director at Pacific Environment, a US-based NGO. 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.

Delays Force Shell to Drill More Arctic Wells in 2013

By Alexis Flynn

LONDON–Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSB) expects to drill eight wells in the second half of its two-year Arctic exploration program, three more than it had originally planned, as stubborn ice sheets and permit delays have reduced the amount of time available to complete the first five wells this year.

Shell, which still plans to drill ten wells in two years, is busy working with the U.S. coastguard to complete a special oil spill containment vessel that is being retrofitted to operate in more challenging conditions, a company spokesman said Wednesday. 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.

Truck still stuck amid protest

Wednesday, 1 August 2012

Tensions continue to run high in Co Mayo as a truck carrying machinery for a controversial gas project remains stuck at a junction.

The 40m vehicle has been blocking a road near the Glenamoy Bridge in Erris since Tuesday morning after failing to negotiate a turn. But efforts to move it were suspended overnight due to protesters.

It was one of three trucks transporting parts of a large tunnel-boring machine, which is being used to dig a 4.9km (3-mile) tunnel under Sruwaddacon Bay and inland to the Bellanaboy Gas Processing Terminal as part of Shell’s Corrib gas project. 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.