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Iraq

The World’s Largest Gas Flaring Environmental Disaster

Senior executive directors of Royal Dutch Shell Plc had advance sight some days ago of a draft of the article below. It is a follow-up article by a whistleblower whose identity is known to us.

The World’s Largest Gas Flaring Environmental Disaster Shell Exposing The World Bank Group to Corruption & US Sanctions

Under Shell’s egregious stewardship, Iraq is literally burning billions of dollars in lost revenue, and the country’s power plants are being deprived of the much-needed fuel supply to end Iraq’s chronic power crisis.  The power outages have been the main destabilizing force in the country, which have also often led to mass protesting, civil unrest, and countless civilian casualties.    

By: The Iraqi Governance Revolt & Systemic Overhaul!

Introduction

Iraq holds the 12th largest natural gas reserve in the world, however, the country equally represents 12% of global gas flaring, “suggesting there may be systematic and structural barriers to reducing gas flaring practices,” according to the latest Global Gas Flaring Tracker Report produced by The World Bank Group.

Although officially signed in 2011, Royal Dutch Shell (Shell) formalized the establishment of its gas monopoly in Iraq, the $17 billion Basrah Gas Company (BGC), in May 2013, which also gave birth to the so called ‘world’s largest flare reduction program’. read more

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Shell says fully committed to Iraq gas venture, plans ‘massive’ expansion

DUBAI (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) is fully committed to its gas joint venture in Iraq, after the energy major exited its oil assets in the OPEC country, and plans to boost its gas output there to 1.4 billion cubic feet (bcf) a day by 2020, a senior executive said.

Iraq’s gas development plans have long focused on Basra Gas Co (BGC), a $17 billion, 25-year project in which Iraq has 51 percent, Shell 44 percent and Japan’s Mitsubishi Corp (8058.T) 5 percent.

The project was designed to aggregate gas from fields in the south including West Qurna 1, operated by Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N); Zubair, operated by Italy’s Eni (ENI.MI); and Rumaila, developed by BP (BP.L). read more

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Shell to sell West Qurna 1 oilfield stake to Japan’s Itochu for $406 million

Reuters Staff: MARCH 23, 2018

(Reuters) – Oil major Royal Dutch Shell on Friday agreed to sell its entire stake in Iraq’s West Qurna 1 oilfield to Japan’s Itochu Corp for $406 million.

The deal comes shortly after the Anglo-Dutch company agreed to exit the Majnoon oilfield, one of the largest fields in OPEC member Iraq, and hand over its operation to state-run Basra Oil Co (BOC) by end-June. 

Shell EP Middle East Holdings B.V. will sell the entire share capital of Shell Iraq B.V. (SIBV), which holds a 19.6 percent stake in the oilfield to a unit of Itochu, the Anglo Dutch company said. read more

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Shell Takes a Last Exit From Mideast Oil — WSJ

By Sarah Kent and Benoit Faucon

LONDON — Royal Dutch Shell PLC is giving up on its last oil fields in Iraq, leaving the world’s second-biggest oil company with a dwindling footprint in the Middle East — a region it helped build into a petroleum powerhouse.

Shell said Monday it is selling for an undisclosed amount a stake in the West Qurna 1 oil field in Iraq to Japan’s Itochu Corp., the latest step in a gradual retreat from the region. The company is also expected to give up its holding in Iraq’s Majnoon oil field later this year, though it will retain its natural-gas interests in the country. read more

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Shell agrees to sell its stake in Iraq’s West Qurna 1 oilfield to Japan’s Itochu

REUTERS STAFF: JANUARY 15, 2018 / 2:19 PM /

DUBAI (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell has agreed to sell its stake in Iraq’s West Qurna 1 oilfield to Japan’s Itochu, a Shell spokesman said on Monday.

“Itochu and Shell have reached agreement on the sale of Shell’s interest in the West Qurna 1 oilfield and are now working to secure all the necessary approvals from the government of Iraq,” the spokesman said. “Details of the discussions are commercially confidential.”

Iraq has approved the sale by Shell of its 20 percent stake in the West Qurna 1 oilfield to Itochu, a senior Iraqi oil official told Reuters last week. read more

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Iraq Wants To Build Gas Pipeline To Kuwait In Blow To Shell

By Tsvetana Paraskova – Nov 22, 2017, 4:00 PM CST

In a bid to reduce gas flaring and pay off outstanding reparations for the 1990 invasion of Kuwait, Iraq has hired Japanese firm Toyo Engineering to help it build a gas pipeline to Kuwait, in what could be a blow to Shell’s gas ambitions in Iraq, industry sources tell Reuters.

Kuwait is looking to diversify its gas imports from Qatar after several Arab states led by Saudi Arabia severed ties with Qatar earlier this year accusing it of sponsoring terrorism. read more

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Reuters: Shell to hand over Iraq’s Majnoon oilfield by next June

Nov. 8, 2017 11:33 AM ET|By: , SA News Editor

Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A, RDS.B) has agreed to exit Iraq’s Majnoon oilfield and hand over its operation to a state-run company by the end of June 2018, Reuters reports, citing two Iraqi oil officials.

The Iraqi officials reportedly said the deal was reached during a meeting between Shell and officials from state-run Basra Oil on Monday at the Majnoon oilfield, which currently produces ~235K bbl/day of oil.

According to the report, Shell will focus its efforts on the development and growth of Iraq’s Basra Gas Co., which is a joint venture between Shell, Mitsubishi and others. read more

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Iraq may offer Total, Chevron terms different from Shell for Majnoon field development

OCTOBER 21, 2017

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq may offer Chevron (CVX.N) and Total (TOTF.PA) terms to develop the Majnoon oilfield different from those it had given to Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L), Iraqi Oil Minister Jabar al-Luaibi said on Saturday.

Iraq will develop the Majnoon oil field in southern Iraqi by its own means until it can find a foreign partner, Luaibi told reporters, adding that no company has been selected yet.

Luaibi said on Oct. 9 that Chevron and Total are among the companies that have expressed interest in developing Majnoon that Shell has said it wants to leave because of unfavourable changes to fiscal terms. read more

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Shell CEO van Beurden says oil prices will be around $60 by the end of the decade

  • It would not be “unreasonable” to forecast oil at $60 a barrel at the end of the decade, said Royal Dutch Shell CEO Ben van Beurden
  • Oil supply was more unpredictable than demand, van Beurden added

| : 27 Sept 2017

It’s “not unreasonable” to expect oil prices at $60 a barrel by the end of the decade, Royal Dutch Shell CEO Ben van Beurden told CNBC’s “Managing Asia.”

To be sure, that’s not a large rise from current levels.

Brent crude rose 0.38 percent to trade at $58.66 a barrel in Wednesday Asia trade, after hitting a 26-month high on Tuesday, while U.S. crudewas higher by 0.5 percent at $52.14 at 12:00 p.m. HK/SIN. read more

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Eni/OPL 245 growing global bribery probe

Jaclyn Jaeger | Extracts from article published Sept 19, 2017

Italian oil giant Eni in a public filing this month revealed further details about what corruption allegations and investigations its facing around the world.

Corruption allegations against Eni now include Nigeria, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Algeria, and Congo. The number of enforcement authorities, employees, and subsidiaries involved in these allegations has also grown.

Block OPL 245 — Nigeria. Eni first mentioned allegations of international corruption in a Form 6-K (Report of Foreign Issuer) in 2014. In that report, the company said that it had been served with a notice of investigation in July 2014 by the Italian Public Prosecutor in Milan “relating to potential liability on the part of Eni arising from alleged international corruption.” read more

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Will Shell’s Gas Gamble Pay Off?

By Cyril Widdershoven – Sep 16, 2017, 6:00 PM CDT

Supermajor Royal Dutch Shell has decided to divest its Iraqi oil assets in a move to focus on its future in natural gas.

The industry giant is seemingly breaking from its oil heritage to head full speed into the “Golden Age of Gas.” Shell’s decision to leave Iraq’s upstream oil assets is not without risk, however, as the market for natural gas is even more oversupplied than it is for crude oil.

Reuters reported the move first, based on a letter from the Iraqi ministry of oil, followed by a confirmation from Shell. The Dutch heavyweight indicated to the press that its oil asset divestment in Iraq is in line with its strategy to focus more on natural gas and downstream activities. read more

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Shell set to draw line under a century of Iraqi oil

Ron Bousso: SEPTEMBER 13, 2017

LONDON (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell is set to end a century of oil production in Iraq by withdrawing from two of the Arab state’s flagship fields to focus on more profitable gas development.

Shell’s retreat highlights the challenges foreign operators face with low-margin oil contracts in Iraq, an OPEC member that sits on some of the world’s biggest oil reserves and wants to boost production after years of conflict hindered development.

The Anglo-Dutch firm said on Wednesday it had agreed with Iraq’s oil ministry to relinquish operations at Majnoon field to the government after unfavorable changes to fiscal terms. The announcement confirmed an earlier Reuters report. read more

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Shell says to focus on Basra gas in Iraq after Majnoon exit

SEPTEMBER 13, 2017 / 7:52 AM

LONDON (Reuters) – Oil major Royal Dutch/Shell said on Wednesday it would focus its efforts on the development and growth of the Basra Gas Company in Iraq after handing over operations of the Majnoon oil venture back to the Iraqi government.

On Tuesday, Reuters reported that Shell Iraq has started preparations to finalize the exit of Shell from Majnoon, one of the largest fields in the country.

“In May 2017, the ministry of oil in Iraq applied the performance penalty and remuneration factor on the Shell operated venture, the Majnoon oil field, which had a significant impact on its commerciality,” a Shell spokesman said. read more

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Is it game over for BP plc and Royal Dutch Shell plc?

By  1 Sep 2017, 18:12 Do you drive an electric car? For most of you the answer will be a resounding NO. Do you think more people should drive electric vehicles to help protect the environment? I’m guessing the answer will be an emphatic YES. And therein lies the problem.

The end is nigh?

I’m sure most drivers stuck on the world’s largest car park, the M25, would agree that more people should use public transport. But few are prepared to make the change themselves. I think by now you’re probably getting my point. Most of us want to live in a better world, but we look to others to make the necessary sacrifices.

It’s for this reason that I don’t believe the end is nigh for fossil fuels. That really matters to companies like  and Royal Dutch Shell. In fact I’ve been listening to experts harping on about the end of our reliance on fossil fuels ever since I was a child. And believe me, that was a very long time ago. read more

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3 big questions hanging over Royal Dutch Shell plc

The Motley Fool: 3 big questions hanging over Royal Dutch Shell plc

By The Motley Fool  Feb 14, 2017

A stagnating oil price has seen investor appetite for Royal Dutch Shell(LSE: RDSB) seep away from recent multi-year highs.

The crude colossus saw its share price strike its highest since November 2014 a month ago, but fresh fundamental fears have seen Shell — like many of its London-quoted peers — retrace more recently.

Shale producers returning

Arguably the biggest driver behind Shell’s decline has been a steady build in the US rig count.

With drillers across the Atlantic becoming ever-more-comfortable with oil prices anchored around the $50 per barrel mark, the number of units in operation has been steadily increasing since the autumn. read more

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Halliburton to drill wells for Shell, doubling Iraq’s Majnoon oil field output: sources

Shell has signed a $210 million contract with Halliburton to drill 30 wells in Iraq’s Majnoon oil field, two oil sources said on Thursday.

The agreement will double the field’s production after three years, the sources said.

Shell, the operator of the giant Majnoon field in southern Iraq, could not be reached immediately for comment.

Majnoon’s output should rise to about 400,000 barrels per day in three years, from 220,000 bpd now, according to the sources.

(Reporting by Aref Mohammed and Saif Hameed; writing by Maher Chmaytelli; Editing by Susan Fenton) read more

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Shell Considering Dumping Its Iraqi Oil Fields

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By Julianne Geiger – Nov 28, 2016, 2:24 PM CST

Royal Dutch Shell is considering exiting its positions in Iraqi oil fields, according to industry sources cited by Reuters.

Shell, which declined to comment, is the world’s top liquefied natural gas producer, and is only exiting its oil field assets in Iraq, not its gas field assets. Iraq accounted for 4.4 percent of Shell’s total oil and gas production in 2015.

The fields in question are the Majnoon field, in which Shell holds a 45 percent interest, and the West Qurna field. Majnoon produces an average of 200,000 barrels per day, according to Shell’s website. read more

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OPEC makes last-ditch bid to save oil deal as tensions grow

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By Rania El Gamal and Alex Lawler | VIENNA

OPEC was trying on Monday to rescue a deal to limit oil output as tensions grew among the producer group and non-OPEC member Russia, with top exporter Saudi Arabia saying markets would rebalance even without an agreement.

OPEC experts started a meeting in Vienna at 0900 GMT and were due to make recommendations to their ministers on how exactly the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries should reduce production when it meets on Nov. 30. read more

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Exclusive: Saudis threaten to raise oil output again as sparring with Iran returns

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By Rania El Gamal and Alex Lawler | DUBAI/LONDON

Old disputes between Saudi Arabia and rival Iran resurfaced at a meeting of OPEC experts last week, with Riyadh threatening to raise oil output steeply to bring prices down if Tehran refuses to limit its supply, OPEC sources say.

Clashes between the two OPEC heavyweights, which are fighting proxy wars in Syria and Yemen, have become frequent in recent years.

Tensions subsided, however, in recent months after Saudi Arabia agreed to support a global oil supply limiting pact, thus raising the prospect that OPEC would take steps to boost oil prices. read more

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Shell, Vitol boost UAE storage to handle Iraqi crude-sources

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By REUTERSPUBLISHED: 14:40, 31 October 2016

By Rania El Gamal

DUBAI, Oct 31 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell and trading house Vitol are stepping up their operations in the port of Fujairah to store Iraqi crude as production from the OPEC member rises, industry sources said.

Iraq is OPEC’s second largest producer after Saudi Arabia and its output has almost doubled since the start of the decade at 4.7 million barrels per day (bpd).

With a target of 5.5-6 million bpd by 2020, Iraq wants to be exempt from the cartel’s bid to boost oil prices with production cuts to reduce a global surplus. read more

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Now could be the perfect time to sell Royal Dutch Shell plc

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By Royston Wild – Friday, 7 October, 2016

Stakeholders in fossil fuel goliath Royal Dutch Shell (LSE: RDSB) could be forgiven for breaking out the bubbly following the company’s recent share price detonation.

Shell saw its value gallop 28% higher during the third quarter, and the firm’s meteoric ascent may not be finished yet — indeed, the stock is within striking distance of July’s quarterly peak of £21.48 per share, the loftiest level since May 2015.

But while many momentum investors may be tempted to plough in, I reckon now could provide a terrific opportunity for investors to cash out. read more

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Iraq’s OPEC revolt shows Saudi-Iran oil deal fragility

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Iraq’s OPEC revolt shows Saudi-Iran oil deal fragility

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By Rania El Gamal and Alex Lawler | ALGIERS

For years, debates in the OPEC conference room were dominated by clashes between top producer Saudi Arabia and arch-rival Iran.

But as the two managed to find a rare compromise on Wednesday – with Riyadh softening its stance towards Tehran – a third OPEC superpower emerged.

Iraq overtook Iran as the group’s second-largest producer several years ago but kept its OPEC agenda fairly low-profile. On Wednesday, Baghdad finally made its presence felt. read more

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Oil drops below $46

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By Ed Crooks: September 16, 2016

The more positive mood in crude prices last week always looked fragile, based as it was on nebulous talk about a possible Opec production freeze and volatile US data that were heavily influenced by storm Hermine at the beginning of the month.

That vulnerability was exposed this week. Brent crude, which briefly hit $50 per barrel on September 8, dropped below $46 on Friday.

As prices fell, analysts took differing views on the outlook. Bloomberg focused on the chance of a rebound, as markets started to focus on the growing risk of shortages. On the other hand, the FT’s Neil Hume pointed out that there was still more crude production capacity set to come on stream as a result of the investment binge of 2011-14 – not least the much delayed Kashagan field in Kazakhstan – meaning that prices could remain depressed in the short term. read more

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Shell Sells Gulf Of Mexico Asset, But Faces A Tough Road Ahead

Screen Shot 2016-08-31 at 23.13.17Sarfaraz A. Khan: Aug. 31, 2016 3:20 PM ET

Summary

  • Royal Dutch Shell has agreed to sell its Brutus/Glider assets in the U.S. GoM to EnVen Energy for $425 million in cash.
  • The asset sale is a small step in the right direction which will improve Shell’s cash reserves.
  • The company, however, has made little progress toward achieving its target of selling $6Bn to $8Bn assets this year and $30Bn by 2018.

Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A, RDS.B) has recently agreed to sell its Brutus/Glider assets in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico to Houston-based EnVen Energy for $425 million in cash. Shell was pumping 25,000 barrels of oil per day from these offshore properties, which was equivalent to 5.8% of the oil giant’s Gulf of Mexico production or less than 1% of its total production.

The asset sale is a small step in the right direction which will improve Shell’s cash reserves which stood at $15.2 billion at the end of June. Shell intends to sell $6 billion to $8 billion of assets this year. Overall, the company aims to dispose $30 billion of assets, spread in 5 to 10 countries and representing 10% of its production, by 2018. That will allow the company to reduce its debt which has ballooned following the $53 billion takeover of BG Group. read more

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Exclusive: Iraq, oil companies agree to restart investment, boost output

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Exclusive: Iraq, oil companies agree to restart investment, boost output

BAGHDAD/BASRA – | BY AHMED RASHEED AND AREF MOHAMMED: Business | Thu Aug 11, 2016 7:05am EDT

Iraq has reached agreement with BP, Shell and Lukoil to restart stalled investment in oil fields the firms are developing, allowing projects that were halted this year to resume and crude production to increase in 2017, Iraqi oil officials said.

The agreements, reached in July and August, effectively delay to the second half of the year projects that the three companies had planned to carry out in the first half, which had been suspended because of low oil prices. read more

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Iraq Inquiry Shows Oil Was a Consideration for U.K. Before War

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British officials held talks with BP and Shell about Iraqi oil

Blair said high oil price was his big “domestic worry”

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By Javier BlasJuly 6, 2016 — 4:27 PM BST

The U.K. government held talks with Royal Dutch Shell Plc and BP Plc to ensure British energy companies were “well-placed to pick up contracts in the aftermath” of the invasion of Iraq, according to declassified documents released as part of an official inquiry.

Although the report, overseen by former civil servant John Chilcot, doesn’t explicitly say oil played a role in the war, documents publish on Wednesday show British officials discussed how to obtain “substantial business for U.K. companies” in the energy sector. read more

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Indonesia’s Pertamina picks Shell to process Iraqi crude -official

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By Wilda Asmarini: Markets | Wed Jun 29, 2016 

Indonesia’s Pertamina has selected Shell to process a million barrels per month of Iraqi crude at a Singapore refinery, a senior official at the state-owned company said on Wednesday.

The quest for oil-processing capacity abroad is partly spurred by a lack of investor interest in building domestic refineries because of unfavourable investment conditions set by the government.

“We’ve selected Shell because they are the most competitive,” said Daniel Purba, senior vice president of Pertamina’s Integrated Supply Chain unit. read more

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Shell reduces ex-pat workforce on Manjoon oilfield

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Written by Reporter – 23/05/2016 2:28 pm

Oil major Shell is said to be reducing its workforce at the Majnoon oilfield in Southern Iraq as the country continues to manage a number of financial pressures.

The field has an estimated recoverable reserves of almost 13 billion barrels.

It has managed to provide significant financial funds for the Iraqi government in recent years since exporting began.

According to reports, the expatriate workforce has been reduced from 400 to 200 workers.

A Shell spokesman said the move had been taken in “light of the economic challenges” facing the region. read more

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Shell cutting back manpower sharply at Iraq’s Majnoon oilfield

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Anthony McAuleyMay 21, 2016

Royal Dutch Shell is cutting its workforce sharply at the Majnoon oilfield near Basra in southern Iraq as the government’s financial woes deepen.

Majnoon is one of the five “supergiant” (containing more than 5 billion barrels) oilfields located in southern Iraq, with estimated recoverable reserves of nearly 13 billion barrels, and it has been a major provider of additional funds for the Iraqi government since it started exporting two years ago.

The field employed more than 3,000 at peak construction – three-quarters of whom were Iraqis. But the expatriate workforce had dwindled to 400 amid cutbacks as the government has struggled with both the collapse in oil prices over the past 18 months and the costs of the war with militants in the west of the country. read more

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FT Energy Source: Saudi Reform

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By Ed Crooks: April 29, 2016

When Saudi Arabia’s oil minister raises an eyebrow, the world pays attention. So when the kingdom launched a hugely ambitious economic reform programme this week, it naturally attracted enormous interest.

The FT in an editorial praised what it described as “a bold bid to transform Saudi Arabia’s economy”, but highlighted the challenges Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman would face in making his vision a reality. Simeon Kerr and Anjli Raval described the plans as “highly ambitious – some would say unrealistic”. read more

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Nick Goodway: Why do we pay Shell to extract our oil assets?

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By Nick Goodway: 19 April 2016

My eye was caught yesterday by a document from Royal Dutch Shell snappily entitled Report on Payments to Governments for 2015. (I know, I don’t lead a very exciting life.) This is one of the myriad new reports that corporates are forced to release each year in the interests of greater transparency and good governance.

But for once, alongside the hundreds of such reports I have binned, there was some interesting stuff here. In short, the report details how much Shell paid to each government in the countries in which it operates in terms of their share of production, royalties, taxes and fees. read more

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Iraq Exports First Natural Gas Shipment in Its History

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By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS: MARCH 20, 2016

BAGHDAD — Iraq on Sunday exported the first shipment of natural gas in its history, a key development for the OPEC member struggling to feed a cash-strapped economy amid an expensive fight against the Islamic State group.

The move revives a long-sought ambition by Iraq to be a gas exporter, thanks to a joint venture with Anglo-Dutch Royal Dutch Shell PLC and Japan’s Mitsubishi Corp. Iraq first planned to begin exporting gas in the late 1970s, but that timeline was delayed by the Iraq-Iran war when Iraqi export ports were bombed. read more

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How Saudi Arabia Turned Its Greatest Weapon on Itself

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By ANDREW SCOTT COOPER: A version of this op-ed appears in print on March 13, 2016

FOR the past half-century, the world economy has been held hostage by just one country: the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Vast petroleum reserves and untapped production allowed the kingdom to play an outsize role as swing producer, filling or draining the global system at will.

The 1973-74 oil embargo was the first demonstration that the House of Saud was willing to weaponize the oil markets. In October 1973, a coalition of Arab states led by Saudi Arabia abruptly halted oil shipments in retaliation for America’s support of Israel during the Yom Kippur War. The price of a barrel of oil quickly quadrupled; the resulting shock to the oil-dependent economies of the West led to a sharp rise in the cost of living, mass unemployment and growing social discontent. read more

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Oil price falls again as Shell shareholders prepare to vote on mega-merger with BG Group

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The price tumbled as much as 3 per cent during trading yesterday when it emerged Iraq had produced a record high of oil and may even raise output further.

The news comes as the market is already braced for more supply from Iran after sanctions were lifted. 

Tankers have begun to leave Iran’s ports and it agreed its first deal with a European company last week with Greece’s refinery Hellenic Petroleum. 

Some analysts expect Iran to increase production to between 3million and 4million barrels a day. Iraq’s fields produced more than 4.1million barrels a day. read more

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Oil Prices Could Collapse To $20

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By Tyler Durden

Extracts from extracts…

Could oil prices collapse to $20? 

The short answer is ‘yes.’

We believe that crude oil prices could fall further unless global oil production is reduced. As shown in Table 2, we estimate that the global oil market could be oversupplied by roughly 920,000 bpd in 2016. The key assumptions are year-over-year growth in global demand of 1.2 million bpd, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Libya hold production at current levels, Iran ramps up production at moderate pace over the course of the year and the U.S. rig count remains at current levels. read more

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Shell cuts 2015 capex, sees downstream downturn

Screen Shot 2015-04-30 at 09.37.24Shell cuts 2015 capex, sees downstream downturn

London (Platts)–30 Apr 2015

* Capex reduced by more than $2 billion
* Decision on Majnoon development pushed back to 2017
* CFO says refining margins already worsening

Shell said Thursday it had reduced its expected 2015 capital expenditure to $33 billion from previous guidance of a little more than $35 billion as the company continues to adjust its business to the lower oil-price environment.

Shell, releasing its first-quarter results, also said it continued to reduce its operating costs and capital spending, with Q1 operating expenditure down by $1.1 billion year on year. read more

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Oil companies offer to cut 2015 spending in Iraq

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Screen Shot 2015-02-18 at 13.17.14* Iraq seeks to stem losses from falling oil prices

* Calls on firms to reduce development costs

* Baghdad seeks amended contracts to “share risk”

* Says companies should maintain output despite changes

MR_Story By Ahmed Rasheed

BAGHDAD, March 12 ( Reuters ) – Oil companies have proposed millions of dollars of cuts in development spending in Iraq, a senior oil ministry official said, after Baghdad told them low oil prices and its fight against Islamic State had made payments difficult. read more

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Shell signs $11 billion deal to build petrochemicals plant in Iraq

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 21.26.38FROM REUTERS

Shell signs $11 billion deal to build petrochemicals plant in Iraq

(Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) signed deal with Iraq worth $11 billion (7 billion pounds) to build a petrochemicals plant in the southern oil hub of Basra, Industry Minister Nasser al-Esawi said on Wednesday.

Esawi told a press conference in Baghdad the Nibras complex, which is expected to come on line within five to six years, would make Iraq the largest petrochemical producer in the Middle East. The factory’s expected output was not immediately clear.

Shell, which is one of the main oil majors operating in south of Iraq, signed a memorandum of understanding with the ministry for the project in 2012. read more

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Oil prices down by almost 50%

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From an article published by Bloomberg News Friday 2 Jan 2015

Oil dropped to the lowest in more than five and a half years amid growing supply from Russia and Iraq and signs of manufacturing weakness in Europe and China.

Oil output in Russia and Iraq surged to the highest levels in decades in December, according to data from both countries’ governments.

Prices slumped 46 percent in New York in 2014, the steepest drop in six years and second-worst since trading began in 1983…

The European oil fell 48 percent last year, the second-biggest annual loss on record behind a 51 percent tumble in the 2008 financial crisis. read more

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Shell CEO on global turmoil’s impact

Screen Shot 2014-09-07 at 21.14.49Screenshots from a Fox Business video of an interview with Royal Dutch Shell CEO Ben van Beurden on 4 Sept 2014 shows the uncertainty that surrounds Shell. Mr van Beurden bluntly made it clear at the May 2014 Shell AGM that Shell’s priority is what is in the economic interests of Shell shareholders, not geopolitical concerns i.e. the invasion of Crimea. That explains why he happily bowed to Putin days after the annexation. Whatever the spin, ethics and moral issues are ruthlessly put to one side. The lack of scruples by companies such as Shell, has encouraged the Putin regime. Driven by the same motive, access to hydrocarbon reserves, Shell also connived with Hitler in his territorial ambitions. More recently, Shell traded with Iran despite US sanctions and Shell spin to the contrary. Like in relation to Shell’s claimed business principles, it is Shell’s deeds, not the mixed messages, which count. read more

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Why doesn’t Shell sue Donovan for libel?

Screen Shot 2014-09-07 at 15.49.41Such deliberate misinformation (propaganda, to put it politely) is also totally at variance with Shell’s claimed core business principles. This proves beyond any doubt that the media and the public should not believe anything Shell says. The company even lies to itself.

By John Donovan

Why doesn’t Shell sue Donovan for libel?

I feel sure that this is a question that many visitors to this website have probably asked themselves many times.

It is a question that Royal Dutch Shell put to itself in July 2009. 

Below is an extract from an authentic confidential Shell internal document dated 08 July 2009 in which this very question was raised in relation to “the Donovan’s.” Shell lawyers have redacted names shown on the “Confidential Focal Point”document, other than the names of my late father and myself. A series of questions are posed and then answered, to provide a contingency script if certain anticipated questions were raised by the news media, or at the Shell AGM.  read more

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BP and Shell keep a watchful eye on events in Iraq

Screen Shot 2014-01-30 at 00.47.49Extracts from a This Is Money/Daily Mail article by Rob Reed published 27 June 2014 under the headline: “BP and Shell keep a watchful eye on events in Iraq as violence continues to escalate in the region”

The upward pressure on oil prices since terror group ISIS began its horrific offensive has been echoed by even bigger movements in the share price of firms with an Iraqi presence. The two British supermajors with a foot in Iraq are BP and Shell, the former operating the vast Rumaila field and the latter developing sister prospect Majnoon. Both have removed non-essential staff but say their operations, in the to-date peaceful oil-rich south of the country, have been unaffected. If Baghdad were to be overrun, that would be a different matter, but oil industry types are quietly hopeful that it won’t come to that. 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.

Royal Dutch Shell shameful record of appeasement

By John Donovan

For nearly a hundred years the Royal Dutch Shell Group has appeased and collaborated with evil regimes including Nazi Germany, Nigeria, Brunei, Saudi Arabia, Libya, Iran, Iraq under Saddam Hussein, Apartheid South Africa and with Putin of Russia, despite his annexation of Sakhalin2 and Crimea. Anything to earn a buck irrespective of ethics, human rights abuses and massive corruption. Astonishingly, Shell claims to operate with a set of business principles. Shell’s latest CEO, Ben van Beurden, is shown bowing to Putin on 18 April 2014,  soon after Russia had used force to annexe Crimea. No shame. No morals. Its just business. It is what Ben van Beurden describes as Shell’s “economic interests.”  Following in the foot steps of the founder of the Royal Dutch Shell Group, the ardent Nazi, Sir Henri Deterding.  read more

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Shell-led consortium boosts production at Iraq’s prized Majnoon oil field

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By Associated Press, Published: October 6

BAGHDAD — An Iraqi official says a consortium led by Royal Dutch Shell has boosted production at a prized oil field in the country’s south to 175,000 barrels a day, speaking at a ceremony formally inaugurating commercial production.The head of the state-run South Oil Company, Dhia Jaafar, said Sunday that Shell and its partner, Malaysia’s state-run Petronas, plan to increase production from the nearly 12.5 billion-barrel Majnoon field to more than 200,000 barrels per day in early 2014.

It is located in Basra province, about 550 kilometers (340 miles) southeast of Baghdad.

The deal was awarded in Dec. 2009 with a pledge to reach 1.8 million barrels per day over 10 years. Then, production rated about 45,000 barrels per day. The consortium had to rehabilitate existing infrastructure and add new facilities.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

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Iraq’s 2013 oil target within reach, 2014 to disappoint

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Fri Jun 21, 2013 10:39am EDT

* Production flatlines at 3 mln bpd in first half

* Target of 3.4 mln by end year “doable”

* New oilfields due on stream include Shell’s Majnoon

* 2014 goal of 4.5 mln bpd seen as unachievable

By Peg Mackey and Alex Lawler

LONDON, June 21 (Reuters) – Iraq’s oil output target for 2013 is still within reach, even with flows stuck at 3 million barrels a day during the first half of the year, but a lofty goal for 2014 will be far more difficult to meet, oil executives and officials say. read more

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Shell to Start Iraq Oil Output Amid Plans for Saudi Investments

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By Maher Chmaytelli and Nayla Razzouk: May 16, 2013

Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA) will start producing crude at Iraq’s Majnoon oil field as early as next month and plans to increase energy investments in Saudi Arabia, its regional vice president said.

Output from Majnoon, one of Iraq’s largest oil fields, will start “around mid-year” and increase to 175,000 barrels a day by the end of 2013, Mounir Bouaziz said in an e-mailed response to questions. In Saudi Arabia, Shell is holding talks with officials on a project to develop natural gas from the kingdom’s Kidan field in the Rub al-Khali, or Empty Quarter, he said. read more

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Shell Starts World’s Largest Gas-Capturing Plant in Iraq

Screen Shot 2013-03-05 at 14.17.28 By Kadhim Ajrash & Nayla RazzoukMay 1, 2013 1:32 PM GMT+0100

Royal Dutch Shell Plc. (RDSA) and Mitsubishi Corp. (8058) started operations at a $17-billion joint venture to capture gas from some of Iraq’s largest oil fields.

The Basrah Gas Co. project, the biggest of its kind, captures so-called associated gas flared from the southern oil fields of Rumaila, West Qurna-1 and Zubair, according to a statement on Shell’s website. Iraq’s state-owned South Gas Co. holds a 51 percent stake in the 25-year venture, while Shell owns 44 percent and Mitsubishi the remainder. read more

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Iraq, Royal Dutch Shell kick off major gas project in oil-rich south

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By Associated Press, Updated: Wednesday, May 1, 1:16 PM

BAGHDAD — Royal Dutch Shell says it has officially kicked off a multibillion-dollar project to tap natural gas in Iraq’s south.The $17 billion joint venture will gather, process and market associated gas, a by-product of producing oil, from three oil fields in the petroleum-rich province of Basra.

Iraq holds 51 percent in the 25-year partnership while Shell holds 44 percent and Japan’s Mitsubishi holds 5 percent. The gas will be used mainly for domestic energy needs, but there is also an option for exports. Wednesday’s announcement was published on Shell’s website. read more

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Shell, Mitsubishi Will Start Iraq Plant on April 15

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By Khalid Al-Ansary and Nayla Razzouk on April 11, 2013

Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA) and Mitsubishi Corp. (8058) will start capturing gas from Iraq’s oil fields next week in a $17 billion project known as Basra Gas Co.

“Basra Gas Co. will start operations officially on April 15,” said Ali Hussain Khudayir, director general of South Gas Co., which represents the Iraqi government’s controlling stake in the Basra Gas Co. venture.

The plant will produce 400 million cubic feet (11 million cubic meters) a day from next week, climbing to 2 billion cubic feet a day by 2017, Khudayir said on March 27. The facility will capture so-called associated gas from the Zubair, Majnoon and West Qurna-1 oil fields in southern Iraq. read more

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Shell did not sign Kurdish deal, Baghdad says

: Sept 28, 2012

Baghdad has denied reports Royal Dutch Shell will become the latest oil major to set up shop in the autonomous Kurdish north.

“We don’t have any discussions with the Kurdish regional government [KRG] about working in the region,” a statement released by the office of Iraq’s deputy prime minister for energy quotes Hans Nijkamp, a Shell vice president, as saying.

According to the statement, Mr Nijkamp also described as “inaccurate” reports that the oil major was set to follow its competitors ExxonMobil, Total and Chevron into the autonomous north. 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.