The Scotsman: Shell
Posted 30 May 04
THE oil industry is still essentially run by geologists, so Shell’s executives will have a ready analogy for the periodic tremors the seismic upheaval of Shell’s 3.9 billion barrel reserves downgrade in January is still throwing out.
Last week’s 120 million barrel downgrade, Shell’s fourth this year, barely registered on the market’s Richter scale, however.
The cut pushed Shell’s total reduction in proven reserves to a new total of 4.47 billion barrels, and the company was forced to trim earnings between 2001-2003 by $402m. Shell Transport’s shares rose 2%.
After the kind of trauma Shell investors have already experienced this year, it seems a few hundred extra barrels lost are as nothing.
What really held up the share price though, was relief that Shell’s auditors, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers, had decided to give the company’s annual report a clean bill of health, signalling a return to normality for the company accounts.
Last week’s reserves revision will not be the last, though. The US market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), is still scrutinising the reserves auditing policies ahead of the company publishing a 20-F accounts statement for last year on June 30.
This investigation could throw up further anomalies that cut Shell’s reserves – a possibility made more likely by the revelation that Shell does not have uniform reserves accounting procedures across its operations.
It is, though, likely to be the last one that counts. Five months of intense analysis will have uncovered any serious discrepancies in Shell’s portfolio.
After the rigorous review its assets have been through over the last year, Shell’s reserves are more likely to move in a positive direction than most.
http://business.scotsman.com/economy.cfm?id=614192004
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 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.
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: 
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A head-cut image of Alfred Donovan (now deceased) appears courtesy of The Wall Street Journal.
