Shell shocked over labour
UPDATED: 2006-05-12 01:46:47 MST
Search for skilled workers heats up as oil boom intensifies
By IAN WILSON, BUSINESS EDITOR
Finding workers — especially ones as productive as those currently at the oilsands — is a mounting challenge, says a Shell Canada official.
“One of the areas of concern that we have, and the rest of the industry has, is labour availability,” Brian Straub, Shell's senior vice-president of oilsands, told an investor meeting yesterday.
“We also worry about labour productivity, of course, because we have a lot of new people coming into this business.”
The number of construction and trades workers required for major industrial projects in Alberta is expected to peak between 2008 and 2010.
Several oil companies have already sounded the alarm about what they call a looming labour crisis.
“You're talking something in the order of 30 to 40,000 tradespeople required to execute these projects. They just don't exist today,” said Straub. “The challenge really is, where will these people come from, how will we train them, how will we get them working across this business?”
Straub said a heated market, both globally and in Alberta, has created “huge competition” for resources, people, equipment and materials required at the oilsands.
Meanwhile, Shell president and CEO Clive Mather yesterday defended the Calgary-based company's decision to spend $2.4 billion on BlackRock Ventures Inc.
“I believe it is a fair price … it has been quite difficult to find good value,” said Mather, adding he hopes it will prove to be a good investment over time.
The acquisition was criticized by some as being too expensive.
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.
