Some of the world’s biggest fossil fuel companies have used advertising to “greenwash” their ongoing contribution to the climate crisis, according to files published by the environmental lawyers ClientEarth. They describe the practice as “a great deception”.
The files compare the adverts produced by ExxonMobil, Aramco, Chevron, Shell, Equinor and others with the companies’ operations and products, overall climate impact and progress toward climate-safe business models.read more
Royal Dutch Shell has urged investors to vote for its strategy to shift the business towards cleaner energy sources, despite warnings that the plan does not go far enough to meet the Paris climate agreement goals.
The oil company set out its energy transition plan before its annual shareholder meeting in May, when investors will be able to take part in an advisory vote on Shell’s climate plans for the first time. The vote will not be binding.read more
Has peak oil demand already come and gone? That’s an exceptionally hard question to answer. There are some experts that say unequivocally, yes. They claim that peak oil is already upon us, thanks to the crushing blow that the Covid-19 pandemic dealt to global oil demand as well as the ever-escalating worldwide transition toward clean energy. But there are just as many who say that the world’s thirst for oil still has a long way to go before we hear its swan song.read more
Despite headwinds from corporate mandates to reduce carbon emissions, a temporarily halt for new federal leases in the Gulf of Mexico while the Biden administration reviews its impact on climate change and low oil prices, Royal Dutch Shell sees itself drilling for more oil off the coast of Louisiana and Texas.
“We still think that we’ll be here for decades to come,” said Rick Tallant, vice president Gulf of Mexico at Shell. “There’s still a lot of running room in the Gulf of Mexico, the margins are very good for our investors and the greenhouse gas intensity is arguably the best in the industry.”read more
Ten years after an international inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the sale of OPL 245 oil field by Malabu Oil and Gas Limited to Shell and its partners, ENI and Agip, for a princely sum of $1.3 billion following the resolution agreement of 2011 was opened, findings so far have revealed no evidence of corrupt practices on the part of those involved in the deal.
And, like a pack of badly arranged cards on a shaky table, the case of criminal prosecution against Mohammed Bello Adoke, Nigeria’s former attorney-general and minister of justice and the man whose legal advice formed part of the processes leading to the resolution agreement of 2011, and international oil giants, Shell, ENI and Agip, over their respective roles in the sale of OPL 245 appears to be collapsing from one international jurisdiction to the other. From Washington to London and Milan, the efforts of the Federal Government and its partners to proceed with the criminal prosecution of Bello Adoke and others have been fruitless and unsuccessful.read more
Big oil has a big problem. It’s running out of oil.
Years of under-investment in exploration and a decline in project development has blown a hole in the reserves of the major international oil companies (IOCs), a group that includes ExxonMobil, Chevron and Royal Dutch Shell.
Since 2015 the average reserves of the oil majors has fallen by 25% to now stand at less than 10 years of annual production.
Reserves in the ground is a critical measure of an oil company with a decline seen as a negative by investors.read more
While energy giant Shell may not be the first name that comes to mind when you think of sustainability, it’s looking to change that by “reduc[ing] the carbon intensity of all the energy that we sell by 2050.”
That’s according to Dean Aragón, CEO of Shell Brands International AG, who said the company has set milestones toward becoming a net-zero emissions energy business for the years 2023, 2030 and 2035 that are “very clear, measurable and quantifiable targets on the decarbonization journey.” He did not provide specifics.read more
London — Shell has invested in bio-jet producer LanzaJet as the energy major looks to increase its presence in the production of renewable fuels.
LanzaJet, which is a spin-off of US-based biotech company LanzaTech, said on April 6 said that Shell’s involvement will “further accelerate commercialization” of its “Alcohol-to-Jet” technology as the aviation sector takes steps to reduce its carbon footprint.read more
Apr 2nd, 2021
by John Donovan.
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NAM disputes Groningen gas extraction earthquake damage claims
THURSDAY, APRIL 1, 2021 – 10:00
NAM, the Dutch gas concern responsible for gas extraction in Groningen, raised doubts about the level of damage claims and the home strengthening operation in the fracking earthquake zone in the province. In a statement, NAM said that a major part of the damages was wrongly attributed to earthquakes, and that the standards of the reinforcement project are far too strict, NOS reports.
According to NAM, the risks in the earthquake zone are grossly overestimated, and as a result, many homes will be reinforced with measures that far outweigh the risks, “for some buildings even by a factor of a thousand to ten thousand”. “This leads to unnecessary feelings of insecurity among residents and additional costs.”read more
Apr 1st, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Oil Giants Win Climate Suit as Judges Push For Political Fix
Chevron Corp., Royal Dutch Shell Plc and ConocoPhillips were also sued in the case.
Bloomberg News: Chris Dolmetsch and Erik Larson: Publishing date: Apr 01, 2021(Bloomberg) — New York City failed to persuade a federal appeals court to reinstate a climate-change lawsuit against Exxon Mobil Corp., BP Plc and three other oil companies, with the judges saying the problem demands political rather than legal solutions.
The Friday ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals in New York is a setback for those trying to use the courts to hold the industry responsible for costs associated with rising seas and other consequences of a warming planet.
Chevron Corp., Royal Dutch Shell Plc and ConocoPhillips were also sued in the case.
The court said global warming “is a uniquely international concern” that requires the federal government to step in rather than judges. Only the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has the authority to regulate domestic greenhouse gas emissions, the unanimous three-judge panel held.read more
Mar 31st, 2021
by John Donovan.
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ZeroAvia raises fresh cash for zero-emission hydrogen planes
Other existing investors, including Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures and energy giant Royal Dutch Shell also joined this funding round…
By Nick Carey: 2 MIN READ: MARCH 31, 2021 / 11:19 AM
LONDON (Reuters) – Hydrogen plane startup ZeroAvia said on Wednesday it had secured $24.3 million in a third funding round from investors, including British Airways, which it will use to develop a regional zero-emissions aircraft that can seat more than 50 people.read more
Oil and gas supermajor Shell is set to tie the bonuses for its top executive directors more closely to the group’s performance in reaching its net-zero goals, if shareholders approve the plan at the annual general meeting in May, Reuters reported on Monday.
Two years ago, Shell became the first supermajor to set short-term emission reduction targets and link these targets with executive pay, yielding to growing investor pressure about establishing short-term emission goals.read more
NORTH Sea oil and gas minnow Deltic Energy has seen its shares rise around eight per cent after the company won a fresh vote of confidence from the mighty Royal Dutch Shell.
Shell has decided to go ahead with a plan to drill a well with Deltic, on a prospect that has generated lots of excitement.
The companies have confirmed to the North Sea regulator that they have made a firm commitment to drill a well on the Pensacola prospect, which is set for next year.read more
Mar 29th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Malabu Deal: Italy Ruling Can’t Save Oil Giants From Trial, Group Writes Buhari
The Milan Tribunal ruled on March 17, 2021, that the 13 defendants in OPL 245 international corruption trial had no case to answer. But there are prospects of an appeal in Italy.
BY SAHARAREPORTERS, NEW YORKMAR 28, 2021
The partial freedom granted oil giants by Italian courts in the celebrated OPL 245 corruption case will not stop the prosecution of the accused in Nigeria, a foremost global anti-corruption coalition has said.
In a letter addressed to President Muhammadu Buhari, the anti-corruption coalition said Nigeria should press on with the corruption charges and should not be cowed by any bully tactics of the oil giants who may see the Italy ruling as a shield.read more
HOUSTON, March 26 (Reuters) – Chevron Corp has emerged as a leading contender to buy a Royal Dutch Shell Plc refinery in the U.S. Pacific Northwest, three people familiar with the matter said on Friday.
Shell has been trying to sell its 145,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) Puget Sound refinery in Anacortes, Washington, for at least a year. Reuters reported in January 2020 that the refinery was for sale.read more
The Australian boss of global energy giant Shell sees demand for liquefied natural gas exports continuing to grow until at least the late 2030s even as COVID-19 hastens the shift away from planet-warming fossil fuels.
Shell, which believes its oil output may have hit a peak in 2019 and is now likely to gradually decline, has revealed a brighter outlook for its liquefied natural gas (LNG) assets including those in Queensland and off Western Australia.read more
Mar 23rd, 2021
by John Donovan.
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OPL 245: Dan Etete says he has no case to answer in Nigeria after Italian court verdict
22 March 2021
Dan Etete, former minister of petroleum, says Nigerian courts must now strike out charges against him after an Italian court ruled that there was no corruption involved in the OPL 245 transaction.
He also said Malabu Oil and Gas lost over $10 billion to the corruption allegations tied to the oil block.
The OPL 245 deal involved the $1.3 billion purchase of an oil bloc by Royal Dutch Shell and Eni from Malabu, a company in which Etete held majority shares.read more
An Italian court has ruled that oil giants Royal Dutch Shell PLC and Eni SPA are not guilty in a bribery case involving a Nigerian oilfield that has spanned years, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Shell, Eni, and Eni’s CEO Claudio Descalzi, have been on trial for years in the infamous OPL 245 case. Shell, Eni, Descalzi, and others, were accused of knowing that more than $1.1 billion of the $1.3 billion deposited a decade ago into an escrow account controlled by the Nigerian government would eventually be used as bribes to secure oil drilling rights.read more
LONDON (Reuters) – An Italian court acquitted Royal Dutch Shell and Italy’s Eni on Wednesday of corruption in one of the oil industry’s biggest court cases centred around the acquisition of a Nigerian oilfield in 2011.
Italian prosecutors alleged that most of the $1.3 billion purchase price for the licence for the offshore oilfield known as OPL 245 was siphoned off to politicians and middlemen.read more
An Italian energy giant on trial in a $1.1bn (£790m) bribery and corruption case has been granted privileged access to senior EU officials to lobby for fossil fuel investment, an investigation has found.
Eni and its chief executive Claudio Descalzi are on trial alongside Royal Dutch Shell in connection to a deal for one of Nigeria’s most promising oil blocks.read more
Mar 17th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell: Pennsylvania ethane plant completion expected in 2022
MONACA, Pa. (AP) — Shell Chemicals officials say the planned multi-billion-dollar petrochemical, or ethane cracker, plant in western Pennsylvania is expected to be completed next year.
The company said in a statement Tuesday that the company is now in the early stages of commissioning and start-up activities, the Beaver County Times reported.
Shell CEO Ben Van Beurden said in an earnings call last month that the complex, now more than 70 percent complete, would likely be “fully operational” sometime in 2022.read more
Mar 16th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Goldman Sachs board nominates Royal Dutch Shell CFO for director role
By Elizabeth Dilts Marshall: ·
NEW YORK, March 15 (Reuters) – Goldman Sachs Group Inc’s board of directors on Monday nominated the chief financial officer of Royal Dutch Shell plc to become its newest member.
If her appointment is approved by shareholders, Jessica Uhl will be the fifth woman director on Goldman’s board and its only member to come from the fossil fuel industry.
The bank has backed away from fossil fuel development in recent years.read more
QGC Common Facilities Company Pty Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Shell, today announced it has completed the sale of a 26.25% interest in the Queensland Curtis LNG (QCLNG) Common Facilities to Global Infrastructure Partners Australia for US$2.5 billion, following the receipt of regulatory approval.
The sale was announced on December 21, 2020, and is consistent with Shell’s strategy of selling non-core assets in order to further high-grade and simplify Shell’s portfolio. The transaction has an economic reference date of January 1, 2021.read more
Mar 14th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Andrew Mackenzie selected as chairman of Shell
Former CEO of BHP will succeed Chad Holliday after six years in the position.
March 12, 2021
Royal Dutch Shell announced the appointment of Andrew Mackenzie as the new chairman with effect from the conclusion of Shell’s 2021 Annual General Meeting on May 18.
Mackencie will succeed Chad Holliday who will step down after six years as chairman and board director since September 2010.
Andrew Mackenzie, a British national, joined Shell’s Board in October 2020, after a distinguished career in the energy, petrochemicals and resources sector, latterly as Group CEO of BHP from 2013 to 2019.read more
Mar 13th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell mulls sale of non-operated assets in Malaysia
By Reuters Staff: March 13, 2021
KUALA LUMPUR, March 13 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell PLC’s Malaysia unit said it is considering selling its stakes in two production-sharing contracts it does not operate off the coast of Sarawak state.
In a statement on Friday, Shell Malaysia said the decision to consider divestment options is part of Shell Group’s strategy to focus and increase resilience and competitiveness in its upstream business.
The Baram Delta EOR and the SK307 production-sharing contracts are operated by Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd, a unit of state energy firm Petronas. Sarawak Shell Berhad owns a 40% equity interest in Baram Delta and 50% in SK307, with Petronas Carigali holding the remainder.read more
Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A, RDS.B) says its $6B petrochemical complex in northwest Pennsylvania is now more than 70% complete and projected to be operational sometime in 2022.
Shell previously projected the startup in this year’s H1 after suspending work in March 2020 due to pandemic concerns.
The project is one of the largest construction sites in North America and includes a 1.6M mt/year cracker and three polyethylene plants with a combined capacity of 1.6M mt/year.
Portions of the site’s water treatment facility are being commissioned and the site’s 250 MW power plant will soon follow, the company says.
Shell has “hit peak oil, but not peak opportunity,” as its impressive portfolio of assets should drive long-term shareholder returns in the tens of billions of dollars, The Value Portfolio writes in a bullish analysis posted on Seeking Alpha.
Mar 12th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell’s oil trading earnings double in 2020 to $2.6 bln
By Reuters Staff: 1 MIN READ:
LONDON, March 12 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell’s 2020 earnings from crude oil and refined products trading nearly doubled from the previous year to $2.6 billion, according to the company’s annual report.
Mar 11th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell to Charter 10 New Dual-Fuel Crude Tankers
March 11, 2021
Oil major Shell has signed agreements to charter ten new crude tankers powered by dual-fuel liquefied natural gas (LNG) engines, with the company planning to halve half of the long-term chartered crude tankers run on LNG in 2023.
Four of the very large crude carriers (VLCCs) have been chartered from Advantage Tankers, three from AET, and three from International Seaways. All 10 ships will be built in South Korea by DSME, the first operational from 2022, and be on charter to Shell for seven years.read more
Mar 11th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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EV subscription service Onto partners with Shell to expand access to charging
Rebecca Bellan: Wed, March 10, 2021, 7:47 PM·3 min read
British electric vehicle subscription service Onto has partnered with Shell to give its users access to charging stations in preparation for a wave of new EVs coming to market over the next several years.
The partnership, which Shell announced Tuesday, will give Onto customers access to more than 3,400 Shell Recharge charge points in the UK, plus over 17 charging partners within Shell’s network.
“Buying an electric car is a big, scary switch for most drivers,” Onto CEO Rob Jolly told TechCrunch in a recent interview. “Charging anxiety is an issue for them, so we’re trying to make EVs as accessible and affordable as possible, and the Shell partnership is a step up from that.”read more
Mar 11th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell (RDS.A) Receives Europe’s First Carbon-Neutral LNG Delivery
Zacks Equity Research
Wed, March 10, 2021, 4:44 PM
Royal Dutch Shell Plc RDS.A, through its subsidiary Shell Global LNG, accepted the delivery of the first carbon-neutral liquefied natural gas (“LNG”) in Europe from Gazprom.
Notably, Gazprom is a global energy company and is recognized as one of the largest producers and exporters of LNG in Russia.
The carbon-neutral gas had been delivered at the Dragon terminal in Wales, which is a LNG regasification terminal in the U.K., owned by Shell. Importantly, this will allow Shell to further supply it to the domestic energy markets in the U.K.read more
Mar 10th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Court declines to unfreeze Shell’s bank accounts in alleged oil diversion case
By Joseph Onyekwere: 10 March 2021
Justice Oluremi Oguntoyinbo of Federal High Court, Lagos, yesterday, declined to vacate her interim Mareva injunction directing 20 banks to block accounts of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) and its subsidiaries.
The judge also summoned three of the banks’ secretaries and chief financial officers for allegedly disobeying the order made on January 25, 2021.
The court ordered the alleged contemnors to appear before it on the next adjourned date of March 29, 2021.
Justice Oguntoyinbo warned that their failure to appear would result in a warrant for their arrest.
The judge made the order in her ruling on three applications in a suit marked FHC/L/CS/52/2021, filed by Aiteo Eastern E&P Company Ltd against SPDC and four others.read more
Mar 9th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell pushes back Deer Park, Texas, refinery restart to March 13 – sources
Mon, 8 March 2021
HOUSTON (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell Plc pushed back the restart of its 318,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) joint-venture Deer Park, Texas, refinery to March 13, said sources familiar with plant operations on Monday.
Shell spokesman Curtis Smith declined comment.
Shell had planned to restart the 270,000-bpd DU-2 crude distillation unit (CDU), the largest at the refinery, by early this week, the sources said.read more
Mar 8th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Gazprom makes first delivery of carbon-neutral LNG to Europe
By Reuters Staff: 1 MIN READ
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian energy giant Gazprom said on Monday it had delivered its first carbon-neutral shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Europe.
Gazprom said its shipment of Russian LNG, which it said was made carbon neutral by offsetting emissions resulting from its production and transport, had been delivered to Royal Dutch Shell at the Dragon terminal in Wales.
Carbon-neutral LNG typically involves companies supporting nature-based projects that reduce emissions to offset those generated from the exploration and production of natural gas.read more
Mar 8th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell Using Battery Power Storage for EV Use in Europe
Dutch energy giant partners with Alfen for trials in Netherlands of EV forecourt system using fast chargers and battery storage, with ability to sell power back to the grid at peak times.
Shell and Alfen have launched a pilot to trial an on-site battery-powered system to support ultra-fast electric vehicle charging at Shell’s Zaltbommel forecourt in the Netherlands.
A Shell first, the battery-powered system offers an alternative solution to costly and time-consuming public grid upgrades by storing electricity in an on-site battery. The increased supply of energy helps power ultra-fast chargers, allowing drivers to simultaneously use the site’s two 175kW charge points.read more
Executives from major oil companies clashed over the prospects of oil and gas for the future at the first virtual edition of the CERAWeek conference in Houston.
While BP’s Bernard Looney and Shell’s Ben van Beurden boasted about their shift away from their core business and into renewable energy, Baker Hughes, Hess Corp., and Spain’s Repsol were among those believing that fossil fuels have yet to leave the scene for good, the Houston Chronicle’s Paul Takahashi reports.read more
Mar 4th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell Canada employing ‘agile teams’ to power energy transition and reduce emissions
Wed., March 3, 2021, 9:15 p.m.
CALGARY — The president and country head for Shell Canada says its transition into a provider of cleaner energy is being driven by a network of “agile teams” of employees who are examining between 30 and 40 project ideas at a time.
Michael Crothers says the teams formed from employees brought in from various parts of the company are looking at proposals that include the use of hydrogen, biofuels, and wind and solar energy to help the company reduce its environmental impact.read more
Mar 3rd, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell Energy to take part in renewable, gas-based power value chain for grid stability
By: Vikas Srivastava | March 3, 2021 8:48 AM
Shell Energy Asia plans to participate in the power value chain in India to resolve the issues of renewable intermittency by using the idle gas-based power assets. The LNG supplier is working with the government and regulators in various geographies to achieve a connection between the renewable plus gas-based power generation for maximum cost and environment benefits, even as it promises to provide round-the-clock (RTC) electricity to the government.
Shell, one of the largest oil and gas explorer and supplier, sees natural gas as the most suitable alternative to bundle with renewables to meet the grid intermittency challenge during night or when sun is not visible. Bundling natural gas with renewables will allow unhindered power generation for anytime of the day or night.
Ajay Shah, VP, Shell Energy Asia, told FE that Shell through its global pronouncements has expressed its aspirations to participate in the power or electricity value chain and form partnerships on the renewables and gas.read more
London — Shell is planning to build the first commercial bio-PTL (power-to-liquid) at its Rheinland refinery in Germany, which will involve expanding its electrolyzer project at the site to 100 MW.
Construction of the PTL unit, which would produce 100,000 mt/year of synthetic kerosene and raw gasoline (naphtha) using green hydrogen generated in the electrolyzer as well as biomass (waste wood), could start in 2023, with a view to commercial operations beginning in 2025, Shell said in a statement Feb. 26.read more
About a month ago, BlackRock Inc.(NYSE:BLK), the world’s largest asset manager with $9 trillion in assets under management (AUM), sent shockwaves through the fossil fuel sector after it vowed to double down on climate activism by backing more shareholder resolutions on climate change and social issues in 2021.
Around the same time, the $226 billion New York State pension fund and the $5B Rockefeller Brothers Fund announced plans to divest the majority of their fossil fuel investments and also sell shares of other companies that have been actively contributing to global warming.read more
London — The EU should include a “methane performance” standard in its upcoming legislative proposals to tackle the issue of methane emissions to ensure it only imports gas from countries with similar policies, a senior official from Shell said Feb. 24.
Speaking during IP Week, Shell’s head of integrated gas, Maarten Wetselaar, said Europe has a major role to play in helping reduce methane emissions from upstream activity.read more
Feb 23rd, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell delays US offshore production start ups
Published date: 22 February 2021Shell has delayed the startup of the PowerNap and Vito deepwater projects in the US Gulf of Mexico because of Covid-19-related issues.
The first oil date for PowerNap has been delayed to early 2022, and the first oil date for Vito has been delayed to 2022, the company said. Both were expected to start up late this year to coincide with an expansion of the Mars offshore crude pipeline system.
“Covid-19-related delays, including reductions in personnel and the impacts of Covid-19 barriers on day-to-day working, have impacted project timelines,” Shell said.
Vito is expected to reach peak production of about 100,000 b/d of oil equivalent (boe/d) and PowerNap is expected to have a peak capacity of 35,000 boe/d.read more
Feb 20th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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By Ron Bousso and Shadia Nasralla
LONDON (Reuters) – Energy giant Royal Dutch Shell vowed to eliminate net carbon emissions by 2050, raising its ambition from previous targets, as its oil output declines from a 2019 peak.
The Anglo-Dutch company is in the midst of its largest overhaul yet as it prepares to expand its renewables and low-carbon business in the face of growing investor pressure on the oil and gas sector to battle climate change.
Shell last year laid out a plan to reach net zero by 2050, in line with the Paris climate agreement and European Union ambitions, but it said the goal depended on its customers.read more
Feb 18th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Canada’s Crescent Point to buy Shell’s Kaybob assets for C$900 mln
By Reuters Staff: FEBRUARY 17, 2021
Feb 17 (Reuters) – Canadian oil and gas producer Crescent Point Energy Corp said it has agreed to buy Kaybob Duvernay assets in Alberta from oil major Royal Dutch Shell’s unit for C$900 million ($708.77 million). ($1 = 1.2698 Canadian dollars) (Reporting by Rithika Krishna in Bengaluru; Editing by Bernard Orr)SOURCE
The Federal High Court in Lagos has granted an interim Mareva injunction directing commercial banks to block Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd accounts.
A Mareva injunction is a court order freezing a party’s assets, until the determination of a case they are involved in, to stop them from taking it abroad.
The order was in a bid to recover the cash equivalent of more than 16 million barrels of crude oil allegedly diverted by the oil giant from AITEO Eastern E & P Company Ltd.read more
Feb 17th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Hydrogen Council members – including Royal Dutch Shell Plc, BMW, Microsoft Corp and Sinopec – plan to increase hydrogen investments six-fold through 2025, from 2019 levels.
Europe pulls ahead in race for hydrogen, as global project pipeline grows: report
FILE PHOTO: The new Febus hydrogen bus is seen before a presentation in Pau, France, January 14, 2020. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau/File Photo
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Most of the world’s planned hydrogen projects and the biggest chunk of related investments this decade are expected to be in Europe, an industry report said on Wednesday, as the continent races to scale up the low-carbon fuel to meet climate goals.read more
Feb 17th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell Deer Park, Texas, refinery and chemical plant shut – company
Reuters Staff: FEBRUARY 16, 2021
HOUSTON (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell Plc shut its 318,000 barrel-per-day joint-venture Deer Park, Texas, refinery because of severe cold weather, the company said on Tuesday
The company’s adjoining chemical plant was also shut.
“Shell’s Deer Park facility has shut down due to unprecedented weather in the region,” the company said in an email. “As a result, flaring is expected to increase in the near term. There is no threat to the surrounding community and we continue to contribute power to the regional grid by way of our cogeneration facilities.”read more
Shell has shut down the crude distillation units of its Deer Park refinery due to a malfunction, Reuters has reported, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter.
The two crude distillation units have a combined capacity of 310,000 barrels of oil daily. According to the Reuters sources, they were shut down after a seal failed on a pump that feeds crude to other units at the refinery.read more
LONDON — Britain’s Supreme Court said Friday that a group of about 50,000 Nigerian farmers and fishermen could bring a case in London’s High Court against Royal Dutch Shell over years of oil spills in the Niger Delta that have polluted their land, wells and waterways.
The judges said there was the potential that a parent company like Shell, which has its headquarters in the Netherlands but a large British presence, has responsibility for the activities of subsidiaries like the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria, which operates in the delta region.read more
Feb 13th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Nigerians Can Sue Shell in U.K. Over Spills, Top Court Says
Bloomberg News: William Clowes: Publishing date: Feb 12, 2021
(Bloomberg) — Thousands of Nigerians can sue Royal Dutch Shell Plc in London over environmental damage in the West African nation, the U.K.’s top court said.
The Supreme Court on Friday reversed two earlier rulings that blocked the case from being heard in England. The decision could pave the way for similar claims from the developing world against British companies.
The ruling is the second legal setback for Shell, headquartered in The Hague, in recent weeks after a Dutch court ordered the company’s Nigerian subsidiary to pay compensation for spills that occurred more than 13 years ago. The prospect of more lawsuits in Europe comes at a bad time for the company as it outlines its plans to transition to cleaner energy.The residents of fishing and farming communities in the crude-rich Niger Delta region say oil spills from pipelines operated by Shell’s local unit have destroyed their land and livelihoods. More than five years after filing their lawsuit, the roughly 42,000 individuals represented will be allowed a trial where they can try to persuade a U.K. court to order the energy giant to pay compensation and clean up the pollution.
Force Rethink?
The decision may force other U.K. multinationals to rethink how they operate abroad, says lawyer Rick Munro.read more
Feb 12th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell plans show steep curve ahead for carbon offset market
By Reuters: FEBRUARY 12, 2021
LONDON (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell has set forth plans for nature-based carbon offsets, derived from forestry and soil stewardship projects, which outstrip the entire global market in its current form, as do its carbon capture and storage (CCS) capacity aims.
Graphic: Shell’s carbon offset ambition
Graphic: Big Oil’s 2019 greenhouse gas emissions Big Oil’s 2019 greenhouse gas emissionsread more
OVER 500 EXTERNAL PUBLICATIONS CITING OUR SHELL WEBSITES
See our link list of over 500 articles by the FT, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Bloomberg, Forbes, Dow Jones Newswires, New York Times, CNBC etc, plus UK House of Commons Select Committee Hansard records, information on U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission websiteetc. all containing references to our Shell focussed websites, or our website founders Alfred and John Donovan. Includes TV documentary features in English and German, newspaper and magazine articles, radio interviews, newsletters etc. Plus academic papers, Stratfor intelligence reports and UK, U.S. and Australian state/parliamentary publications, also citing our Shell websites. Click on this link to see the entire list, all in date order with a link to an index of over 60 books also containing references to our websites and/or our activities.
John Donovan, the website owner Head-cut image of Alfred Donovan appears courtesy of The Wall Street Journal.
ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC FAT CAT CEO, BEN VAN BEURDEN, PAID $30 MILLION IN 2014
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SHELL PRELUDE TO DISASTER
The links below are to a series of articles, many triggered by a well-placed whistleblower directly involved in the pioneering Royal Dutch Shell Prelude project. Includes articles by Mr Bill Campbell above, the retired distinguished HSE Group Auditor of Shell International and another retired Shell guru with a track record of spotting potential pitfalls in major Shell projects.
The campaign waged on this website by John Donovan to persuade Edward Heerema to rename the worlds biggest ship, The Pieter Schelte - which he named after his late father, Pieter Schelte Heerema, a former Officer in the German Waffen-SS - has been successful. On Friday 6 February 2015, Allseas announced that it was changing the ships name, and on 9 February announced the new name - Pioneering Spirit.
GLOBAL NEWS COVERAGE: FEBRUARY 2010
MORE INFORMATION: Contact details for over 176,000 employees and contractors of Royal Dutch Shell reached John Donovan and some environmental and human rights groups, ostensibly from disaffected Shell staff calling for a “peaceful corporate revolution” at the company. The database, from Shell’s internal directory, contained names and telephone numbers for all the company’s work force worldwide, including some home numbers. It was supplied with a 170 page covering note, explaining that it was being circulated by “116 concerned employees of Shell dispersed throughout the USA, the UK, and the Netherlands”, to highlight the harm done by the company’s operations in Nigeria. John Donovan brought the leak to the attention of Shell. Tests proved that the data was authentic and he destroyed the database after being informed by Mr. Richard Wiseman, the then Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer of Royal Dutch Shell Plc, that the confidential information if publicly disclosed, could put Shell employees and contractors in real danger.
This is not a Shell website. Click on Disclaimer link at top of page for more information.
Shell Breaking News
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Notice of 2021 AGM and Shell Energy Transition StrategyApril 15, 2021 06:00EIN PresswireLondon, April 15, 2021 ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC NOTICE OF 2021 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING AND SHELL ENERGY TRANSITION STRATEGY
Virtual attendance and participation enabled for the Annual General Meeting (“AGM”)
Shareholders encouraged to vote in advance of the …
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SHELL’S ROLE IN NIGERIAN OPL 245 BRIBERY SCANDAL
Whatever fig leaves they might be trying to use to hide the truth, Shell and Eni paid over $1bn to a company called Malabu for the OPL 245 licence. Even though the payment was channelled through the Nigerian government, it was clear that Shell knew that the ultimate beneficiary was Dan Etete, the former minister of petroleum. Etete is the owner of Malabu, to whom he awarded the licence when he was Nigerian Minister of Petroleum.
Royal Dutch Shell conspired directly with Hitler, financed the Nazi Party, was anti-Semitic and sold out its own Dutch Jewish employees to the Nazis. Shell had a close relationship with the Nazis during and after the reign of Sir Henri Deterding, an ardent Nazi, and the founder and decades long leader of the Royal Dutch Shell Group. His burial ceremony, which had all the trappings of a state funeral, was held at his private estate in Mecklenburg, Germany. The spectacle (photographs below) included a funeral procession led by a horse drawn funeral hearse with senior Nazis officials and senior Royal Dutch Shell directors in attendance, Nazi salutes at the graveside, swastika banners on display and wreaths and personal tributes from Adolf Hitler and Reichsmarschall, Hermann Goring. Deterding was an honored associate and supporter of Hitler and a personal friend of Goring.
Deterding was the guest of Hitler during a four day summit meeting at Berchtesgaden. Sir Henri and Hitler both had ambitions on Russian oil fields. Only an honored personal guest would be rewarded with a private four day meeting at Hitler’s mountain top retreat.
MORE INFORMATION
Shell appeased and collaborated with the Nazis. The oil giant instructed its employees in the Netherlands to complete a form giving particulars about their descent, which for some, amounted to a self-declared death warrant. Shell used slave labor and was a close business partner in Germany of I.G. Farben, the notorious Nazi run chemical giant that also used slave labor and supplied the Zyklon-B gas used during the Holocaust to exterminate millions of people, including children. Shell continued the partnership with the Nazis in the years after the retirement of Sir Henri and even after his death. It was money generated on Shell forecourts around the world, profiteering from cartel oil prices, that funded the Nazi party and saved it from financial collapse. Evidence about Shell's Nazi connections can be found in extracts from "A History of Royal Dutch Shell" Volumes 1 and 2 authored by historians paid by Shell, who had unrestricted access to Shell archives. There are 67 pages in total, so takes some time to download.
Photograph (full size here) shows a Swastika flag flying at the head office of Royal Dutch Petroleum, 30 Carel van Bylandtlaan, The Hague, during the Nazi occupation of the in World War II (From Image Database Hague Municipal)
Sir Henri Deterding, the founder of the Royal Dutch Shell Group - known as "The Most Powerful Man in the World" - who became an ardent Nazi and financial supporter of Hitler and the Nazi party.
Reading between the lines in various legal documents, it seems that the allegations are that after the technology in question had been disclosed to a Shell company in the USA, the information was passed to Shell in the Netherlands in breach of confidentiality. And Royal Dutch Shell subsequently exploited the technology without payment or credit to the company holding the rights; Newton Research Partners. The inference seems to be that Twister B.V. was founded by Shell partly on trade secrets stolen from Bloom/Newton.
DISCLAIMER: This is not a Shell website nor is it officially endorsed by or affiliated with Royal Dutch Shell Plc. Originally co-founded by the late Alfred Donovan and his son John, it is now operated by John, Shell's "No.1 Enemy", aided by an expert team, with invaluable support from retired Shell senior executives and officials as guest contributors and leaked information from Shell insiders. (JOHN DONOVAN, WEBSITE OWNER) For nearly a decade, we have operated globally under the Royal Dutch Shell Plc top level domain name, dealing on Shell’s reluctant behalf with job applications, business proposals, Shell pension enquiries, shareholder enquiries, complaints, invitations to speak at conferences, an approach from the Dutch Defence Ministry and even terrorist threats. All meant for Shell. Prospect magazine has aptly described this website as being:"An open wound for Shell": WIPO proceedings by Shell to seize the domain name failed. NO SUBSCRIPTION CHARGES: All of our watchdog activities monitoring Royal Dutch Shell, including operating this website, are carried out on a non-profit basis. Any advertising revenues generated are used to recover and/or defray operational costs. We are a news aggregator and original content website. All information is available free for educational and research purposes. SHELL TACIT ENDORSEMENT: WHAT A WELL INFORMED SHELL OFFICIAL SAID ABOUT US:
"John and Alfred Donovan well known in UK/Hague. They perceive Shell played them and so have made it their mission to embarrass,belittle and criticize Shell, which they do quite well. Their website, royaldutchshellplc.com is an excellent source of group news and comment and I recommend it far above what our own group internal comms puts out."
WARNING TO SHELL EMPLOYEES: Shell Global Affairs Security "CAS") is spying on Shell employees globally trying to trace who is visiting, posting, or leaking information to this website from Shell premises. Threats, including death threats, have allegedly been made against conscience driven Shell whistleblowers supplying us with information. The worlds biggest leak of employee details as part of a claimed corporate revolution by 116 Shell employees, suggest the espionage operation, threats and draconian litigation have not been entirely successful in cutting off the supply of information to this website. The insider leaks had already cost Shell billions on the Sakhalin Energy project and the loss of SEIC Deputy Chairman, David Greer. We publish our own carefully researched articles about Shell e.g. "How Royal Dutch Shell saved Hitler and the Nazi Party". MEDIA COVERAGE: Prospect Magazine, The Sunday Times, and The Guardian, have all published major articles about us: "Rise of the Gripe Site";"Two men and a website mount vendetta against Shell' and "92-year-old's website leaves oil giant Shell-shocked”. SHELL PETROL STATION images displayed in the website header panel are licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Information on copyright issues here.
John Donovan can be contacted at [email protected]
SHELL’S $500,000 WEDDING GIFT TO CORRUPT BRUNEI ROYAL FAMILY
EXTRACT FROM ASIAN JOURNAL ARTICLE IN LIST OF LINKS BELOW: "Fireworks will light up the sky for three nights. The local unit of oil giant Royal Dutch Shell has donated 500,000 Brunei dollars (US$292,400; euro 243,700) for the display, and for cultural events to be hosted by popular performers from Malaysia."
IN JULY 2007, MR BILL CAMPBELL (ABOVE, A RETIRED GROUP AUDITOR OF SHELL INTERNATIONAL SENT AN EMAIL TO EVERY UK MP AND MEMBER OF THE HOUSE OF LORDS:
THIS IS WHAT IT SAID:
Subject: This could be the most important whistleblower email you have ever received.
Some unfortunate Royal Dutch Shell workers have already lost their lives. More lives are at stake.
My name is Bill Campbell. I am a former Group Auditor of Shell International. I am writing to you on a matter of conscience in an effort to avert the inevitability of another major accident in the North Sea. The consequences could potentially impact on families in many constituencies, including your own.
As Royal Dutch Shell and the Health & Safety Executive would acknowledge, I am an expert on safety matters relating to offshore oil and gas platforms. In 1999, I was appointed by Shell to lead a safety audit on the Brent Bravo platform. The audit revealed a platform management culture that basically gave a higher priority to production than the safety of Shell employees. To our astonishment we discovered that a "Touch F*** All" policy was in place. Worse still, safety records were routinely falsified and repairs bodged.
I personally brought the shocking situation to the attention of senior management including Malcolm Brinded, the then Managing Director of Shell Exploration & Production. I revealed that ESDV leak-off tests were purposely falsified, not once but many times and that Brent Bravo platform management had admitted responsibility for the dangerous practices being followed. In response to my team ringing alarm bells, management pledged to rectify the serious problems which had been uncovered.
When I later complained that the pledges were not being kept, I was removed from my oversight function.
Four years later, a massive gas leak occurred on the platform. Two workers lost their lives. I have no doubt at all that the inaction of the relevant Asset Manager, the General Manager, the Oil Director and Malcolm Brinded, contributed in some part to the unlawful killing of two persons on Brent Bravo in September 2003.
Shell subsequently pleaded guilty to breaches of the HSE regulations and a record-breaking £900,000 fine was imposed. I thought this would bring about a real change in policy to put the emphasis on safety.
Unfortunately I was wrong. Although I supplied the evidence related to 1999, and the fact that there had been a collapse in controls of integrity from 1999 to 2003 on all 16 of Shell's North Sea offshore installations covered in a post fatality integrity review to the HSE for review by the Procurator Fiscal, none of this evidence was presented before the Sheriff at the subsequent Inquiry. The situation is explained in a letter to the Procurator Fiscal and the Sheriff (on 24th February 2007).
Shell management has engaged in spin to try to pretend that it is getting to grips with its safety problem. However, its atrocious safety record - the worst in the North Sea in terms of accidental deaths and absolute number of enforcement actions – tells a different story. This fact has resulted in a number of newspaper articles.
I have had meetings with senior Shell people including its CEO Mr. Jeroen van der Veer. I regret to say that I have found him to be economical with the truth. He prefers to support cover-up and deceit rather than confronting the underlying problems. Brinded is now Executive Director of Shell Exploration & Production. He believes in burying evidence.
My family and friends would probably prefer me to give up on this matter and enjoy my retirement after so many years working for Shell.
However, by writing to every MP in the UK, no one can ever say that I did not do my best to avert an inevitable further major accident event in the North Sea. When it happens (I pray that I am wrong) I will make this warning communication available to the media together with the vast amount of evidence in my possession.
At least my conscience is clear. I have done everything possible to ring the alarm bells about Shell management and its unscrupulous attitude to the safety of its employees.
Yours sincerely
Bill Campbell
ENDS
(Malcolm Brinded and Jeroen van der Veer are no longer with Shell. The Oil Director referred to in the email is Chris Finlayson, who left Shell to become Chief Executive of British Gas before being fired - his photo immediately below)
SIR PHILIP WATTS, THE GROUP CHAIRMAN OF ROYAL DUTCH SHELL GROUP, FORCED TO RESIGN IN 2004
Shell’s reputation was destroyed in 2004 after FIVE consecutive cuts to its hydrocarbon reserves covering 55% of its total reserves. US and UK financial regulators imposed $150 million in fines on Shell for securities fraud. Shell was also rocked by class action lawsuits. Sir Philip Watts
and Walter van de Vijver (whose headcut images appear courtesy of The Wall Street Journal) were among the Shell executives forced to resign. More details at the foot of this column.
MORE DETAILS: The Shell reserves scandal brought about
the end of the Royal Dutch Shell Group in its original form as an Anglo-Dutch partnership.
Shell Transport & Trading Co and Royal Dutch Petroleum were unified into a single Dutch owned company - Royal Dutch Shell Plc.
Sir Philip turned to religion and is now a very wealthy priest after receiving a payoff/pension package from Shell reportedly worth $18.5 million. Walter van de Vijver in contrast was the victim of a sadistic sacking by his Shell senior management backstabbing colleagues.
Displayed below are some of the spectacular promotional campaigns my company Don Marketing created for Shell in the 1980s and 1990s. This was before the series of SIX high court actions we brought against Shell for stealing ideas (4) and for defamation (2) - all settled by Shell. This website is a permanent response by me to the malicious underhand tactics, including treachery, espionage and intimidation, used by Shell during and after the bouts of litigation. More information is printed at the foot of this column.
MORE DETAILS: After a solicitor acting for Shell threatened to make the litigation "drawn out and difficult" with the intention of draining the resources of a financially weaker opponent, my late father (Alfred Donovan) and I decided to mount a wide-ranging campaign as a counter-measure. We jointly founded the Shell Corporate Conscience Pressure Group, which nearly 15% of Shell UK retailers joined. We regularly conducted ethical surveys involving up to 1500 Shell petrol stations. All responses were opened and authenticated by an independent solicitor who supplied Affidavits confirming the results. In whole page announcements in trade magazines (examples above) we challenged Shell to commission and publish the resuits of independent research asking the same questions and offering respondents GUARANTEED anonymity. Shell never took up the invitation. Instead it asked the UK Advertising Standards Authority to investigate our Shell surveys. No problems were found. The head-cut image of Alfred Donovan appears courtesy of The Wall Street Journal.
SHELL CONTROVERSIES
selection of memorable warnings/articles/images associated with the controversial track record of Royal Dutch Shell.
WARNING: DO NOT DISCLOSE YOUR IDEAS TO SHELL GameChanger OR SHELL Ideas360 WITHOUT TAKING EVERY POSSIBLE PRECAUTION. Shell management has ample funds to pay for intellectual property but prefers to steal it from small businesses and in our experience, gives its full backing to dishonest managers willing to do its bidding. We have sued Shell repeatedly in the High Court for the theft of our Intellectual Property. It is doubtful if anyone can match our dire experience in dealing with this ruthless unscrupulous serial poacher of other parties ideas. Expect threats, legal machinations and sinister action from Shell and its spooks if you object to having your ideas stolen.
Some years ago extensive documentary evidence was brought to the attention of Malcolm Brinded above, when he was Chairman of Shell UK, proving beyond any doubt that Shell executives had conspired to rig a tender for a major contract. A number of innocent firms were deliberately lured into signing confidentiality agreements and disclosing Intellectual Property to Shell under false pretences, in a carefully contrived plot. The firm which was awarded the contract never took part in the tender. One objective of the Machiavellian plan was to stop/delay IP trade secrets owned by the participants in the tender from being disclosed to Shell's rivals. This was achieved by outright deception, without paying a cent to the firms involved, who wrongly believed they were participating in an honest tender. Instead of sacking the ring leader, AJL - who had a personal relationship with the firm which miraculously won the race in which it never ran - Shell senior directors, including Brinded, gave AJL their full backing. Some of the Shell executives involved, including for example, Tim Hannagan, still hold high positions inside Shell - in his case, Global Brand and Visual Identity Manager. If Shell does not accept that this is a true, provable account of what happened, then it should sue for libel. How on earth is such predatory conduct compatible with Shell's claimed business principles?