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August 4th, 2006:

businessweek.com: Striking It Rich In Africa: The continent now accounts for 30% of ExxonMobil’s output

The oil-rich Middle East is in turmoil, Venezuela’s state-run oil company is a mess, and U.S. oil production keeps edging downward. Fortunately for motorists gasping over $3-a-gallon gasoline, there’s one place on the planet where oil production is flourishing: Africa. Daily output in African nations that are not members of OPEC rose 25% from 2002 through 2005 and should climb an additional 35% by 2010, estimates researcher Wood Mackenzie in Edinburgh, Scotland. The world’s largest oil company, Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM ), revealed on July 27 that its production in all of Africa has doubled in three years and now accounts for 30% of its worldwide oil output — more than its output in the U.S. and Canada combined. read more

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Agence France-Presse: More hostages grabbed in Nigeria

Fri, 04 Aug 2006

Nigeria, Africa’s biggest oil producer, was hit by the latest in a series of kidnappings on Friday as three Filipino oil and gas workers were taken hostage in the Niger Delta region, industry sources and police said.

A German was abducted on Thursday.

“The (three) men were abducted at Bonny Island in Rivers State, near the Nigeria Liquified Natural Gas plant. They are our contractors and employees of Baker Overseas Technology Services,” NLNG spokesperson Igwebuike Mbanefo told AFP. read more

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RosBusinessConsulting: Russian environmental service may cancel Sakhalin-2 expertise

RBC, 04.08.2006, Moscow 18:06:00.Rosprirodnadzor, controlling the use of natural resource, intends to obtain a court ruling canceling the results of the environmental assessment of the feasibility study for the Sakhalin-2 project, the press service of Rosprirodnadzor reported. Oleg Mitvol, Deputy Head of Rosprirodnadzor, instructed chiefs of the organization’s authorized departments to prepare a claim for the cancellation of the expert resolution and submit it to the court.

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Dow Jones Newswires: Environment Watchdog Sues To Annul Sakhalin-2 Plan -2-

Friday August 4th, 2006 / 16h58  

Thursday, Rosprirodnadzor had called for pipe-laying work on the island to be halted due to mudslide risks.

Sakhalin-2 is one of two projects in Russia’s Pacific offshore being developed by Western oil companies under production-sharing agreements signed in the early 1990s, and is due to come online in 2008. The other is Exxon Mobil Corp.’s Sakhalin-1 oil project, which has state-controlled oil company OAO Rosneft as a partner.

Gazprom has offered access to the far northern Zapolyarnoye-Neocomian field, the world’s fifth-largest gas deposit, in exchange for a 25%-plus one share stake in Sakhalin-2. read more

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RIA Novosti: Watchdog seeks to overturn Sakhalin II environment study

17:33 | 04/ 08/ 2006 

MOSCOW, August 4 (RIA Novosti) – Russia’s watchdog for natural resources demanded Friday that a court annul a positive decision of the state environmental inspectorate on the development of two sectors of the Sakhalin II project in the country’s Far East.

According to an earlier report from the Russian Academy of Sciences on geological processes endangering shoreline-pipelines in the Sakhalin II energy project and submitted to Oleg Mitvol, a deputy head of Russia’s watchdog in the field, about 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) are under threat from floodwaters, which could endanger human lives as well as lead to an environmental disaster. read more

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BeaumontEnterprise.com (Texas): Contract awarded in Motiva refinery expansion

By: BRIAN PEARSON
08/03/2006

A contract for a proposed Motiva refinery expansion in Port Arthur has been awarded to Bechtel Corp. and Jacobs Engineering Group Inc., Motiva officials announced Thursday.
 
When completed, the project will make the refinery the country’s largest, according to a news release from the Houston-based Motiva.

Under the contract, Bechtel and Jacobs will provide engineering, procurement and construction for a proposed expansion that will produce 325,000 barrels per day at Motiva, which Saudi Refining Inc. and Shell Oil Co. jointly owns, Motiva officials said in a news release. read more

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Vladivostok News: Pipelines’ ups and downs in Russia

4 August 2006

On Wednesday Khabarovsk Governor Viktor Ishayev met the president of Exxon Neftegaz Limited, Steve Terni, to discuss gas supplies to the Khabarovsky region under the Sakhalin-1 project, construction of the oil terminal in the settlement of De-Kastri and a possible gas pipeline to China.

Ishayev reported that the Khabarovsky regional government has an agreement with Exxon Neftegaz Ltd. according to which the region annually receives 2 billion cubic meters of natural gas, a press statement from his office said. read more

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Reuters: Three Filipino gas workers kidnapped in Nigeria

04 Aug 2006 12:30:08 GMT
Source: Reuters

By Austin Ekeinde

PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria, Aug 4 (Reuters) – Three Filipinos working for an American-owned oil service company were kidnapped by unidentified gunmen on Friday on their way to work at a natural gas plant in southern Nigeria, police said.

The kidnapping in the Bonny area of the Niger Delta follows the abduction of a German oil worker from the nearby city of Port Harcourt on Thursday, and comes amid a bloody insurgency by militants fighting for control of the region’s oil wealth. read more

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Reuters: Gazprom against Exxon pipeline

Published: 08/04/2006 12:00 AM (UAE)

Moscow : Russian gas monopoly Gazprom will oppose a plan by US oil major ExxonMobil to build a major gas pipeline from Russia’s Pacific island of Sakhalin to China, a newspaper reported.

Kommersant business daily quoted an unnamed source at Gazprom as saying Exxon’s plan was directly competing with Gazprom’s own project to build a bigger pipeline to China.

“(Exxon’s pipeline) is not foreseen in the programme of development of Russia’s Far East and East Siberia and does not meet the goal of a complex development of gas transportation system in the country’s east,” the source was quoted as saying. read more

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Interfax-Religion – Moscow,Russia: Rosprirodnadzor to dispute Sakhalin-II feasibility study

MOSCOW. Aug 4 (Interfax) – The Russian natural resources watchdog Rosprirodnadzor has said it plans to dispute the conclusions of the state environmental examination on the feasibility study of the comprehensive development of the Piltun-Astokh and Lunskoye sections of the Sakhalin-II project.

A press release of the Natural Resources Ministry says Rosprirodnadzor deputy chairman Oleg Mitvol has given instructions to the heads of the respective divisions of his agency to compile a lawsuit and file it with a court. read more

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RosBusinessConsulting: Gas supplies for RAO UES within Sakhalin-2 under discussion

RBC, 04.08.2006, Moscow 15:07:59.The Russian Industry and Energy Ministry will hold consultations with the Federal Agency for Energy (Rosenergo), the Sakhalin regional administration, and other parties involved to consider the possibility of supplying gas for RAO UES’ internal use within the Sakhalin-2 project. A proposal to hold such consultations, made by RAO UES President Anatoly Chubais and Sakhalin region Governor Ivan Malakhov, was backed by the Industry and Energy Ministry, its press service reported. read more

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International Herald Tribune: Movers: Russia stops Shell project; state may be seeking stake

By Lyubov Pronina
Published: August 4, 2006
 
MOSCOW Royal Dutch Shell was told Thursday by the Russian government to suspend construction of a pipeline on Sakhalin Island, threatening to delay a project whose costs doubled last year to $20 billion.

 
The Natural Resources Ministry said that Shell should halt construction of the link until it can complete environmental and safety studies at the end of the month. The government plans to sue the company to enforce the demand, said Oleg Mitvol, deputy head of the ministry’s environmental monitoring agency.
 
A delay risks raising the cost of the project, the biggest foreign investment in the country, and might strengthen the hand of Gazprom, Russia’s state- run energy company, as it seeks to obtain a stake in the venture. President Vladimir Putin has used Gazprom and Rosneft to tighten his control over the country’s energy resources.
 
“Shell is talking to Gazprom about allowing Gazprom into the project and this could easily be, in Russian style, part of the negotiation tactics,” said Craig Pennington, global leader of energy research at Schroders in London.
 
Shares of Shell in London fell 38 pence to £18.61, or $35.14. Gazprom and the ministry denied any link between the demand Thursday and the Russian gas company’s bid for a stake in the Sakhalin project.
 
The venture includes the first liquefied natural gas export plant in Russia at the southern end of Sakhalin Island. The plant needs the pipeline to bring in gas from fields further north, where ice floes make shipping difficult in the winter.
 
“We are waiting for the end of August,” Mitvol said by telephone from Moscow. “We need to get some more documents. After that we’ll prepare a lawsuit for the arbitration court in Sakhalin demanding to suspend construction.”
 
Environmental groups seeking to protect whales and salmon have already forced Shell to redesign and reroute onshore and offshore pipelines as part of the second phase of the Shell- led Sakhalin-II project.
 
Shell has struggled to increase its production and reserves amid cost overruns or delays at several major projects, including the Bonga deepwater oil field in Nigeria, which started in November, two years behind schedule.
 
Ivan Chernyakhovsky, a spokesman for Sakhalin Energy Investments, the operator of the project for Shell, said earlier by telephone from the site that he could not comment until he had a chance to review the ministry’s statement. A Shell spokesman in London made a similar statement.
 
“By way of measures to lower the risk, we suggest to suspend construction of the pipeline until state environmental expertise of the pipeline project in landslide prone parts is complete,” the ministry’s statement said. A ministry study began July 25 and will be completed Aug. 25.
 
Equity firms consider bid for jewelry stores
 
DUBLIN: Apax Partners Worldwide and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts said Thursday that they were considering making an offer for Signet Group to acquire 1,847 jewelry stores, including the Kay and Jared chains in the United States. Shares of Signet surged.
 
The buyout firms jointly undertook a “preliminary analysis” of Signet, the world’s largest specialty jewelry retailer, that included “the consideration of a possible offer,” Apax said. Signet, which also owns Ernest Jones and H. Samuel stores in Britain, said that it had not been approached.
 
Shares of Signet gained 15.25 pence, or 15 percent, to 116.75 pence, or $2.21, in London. $@
 
As claims decline, Munich Re profits
 
MUNICH: Munich Re, one of the world’s largest reinsurers, said Thursday that profit jumped more than sixfold in the second quarter, beating analysts’ estimates, after it paid less for claims and made more money from investments.
 
Net income rose to €1.13 billion, or $1.44 billion, from €167 million a year earlier.
 
Nikolaus von Bomhard, the chief executive, has raised premiums in storm- affected areas and canceled some policies after last year’s record hurricane season prompted Munich Re to sell assets to settle claims. The company said Thursday that it might beat a forecast for full-year net income of as much as €2.8 billion if there are no unusual claims in the second half.
 
$@ – Oliver Suess
 
Tire maker’s net falls on cost to close plants
 
BERLIN: Continental, the tire maker, said Thursday that second-quarter profit fell 18 percent as the company spent money to eliminate jobs and halt production at unprofitable U.S. tire operations.
 
Net income fell to €201.7 million, or $258 million, from €244.6 million.
 
Manfred Wennemer, the chief executive, who expects 2006 global vehicle production to rise, has cut spending by about 5 percent a year to cope with higher raw material costs and demands from carmakers like Volkswagen to cut prices. Excluding charges for the U.S. reorganization, among them next month’s closure of a North Carolina plant, earnings before interest and taxes would have risen 17 percent, the company said.$@ – Jeremy van Loon
 
 MOSCOW Royal Dutch Shell was told Thursday by the Russian government to suspend construction of a pipeline on Sakhalin Island, threatening to delay a project whose costs doubled last year to $20 billion.
 
The Natural Resources Ministry said that Shell should halt construction of the link until it can complete environmental and safety studies at the end of the month. The government plans to sue the company to enforce the demand, said Oleg Mitvol, deputy head of the ministry’s environmental monitoring agency.
 
A delay risks raising the cost of the project, the biggest foreign investment in the country, and might strengthen the hand of Gazprom, Russia’s state- run energy company, as it seeks to obtain a stake in the venture. President Vladimir Putin has used Gazprom and Rosneft to tighten his control over the country’s energy resources.
 
“Shell is talking to Gazprom about allowing Gazprom into the project and this could easily be, in Russian style, part of the negotiation tactics,” said Craig Pennington, global leader of energy research at Schroders in London.
 
Shares of Shell in London fell 38 pence to £18.61, or $35.14. Gazprom and the ministry denied any link between the demand Thursday and the Russian gas company’s bid for a stake in the Sakhalin project.
 
The venture includes the first liquefied natural gas export plant in Russia at the southern end of Sakhalin Island. The plant needs the pipeline to bring in gas from fields further north, where ice floes make shipping difficult in the winter.
 
“We are waiting for the end of August,” Mitvol said by telephone from Moscow. “We need to get some more documents. After that we’ll prepare a lawsuit for the arbitration court in Sakhalin demanding to suspend construction.”
 
Environmental groups seeking to protect whales and salmon have already forced Shell to redesign and reroute onshore and offshore pipelines as part of the second phase of the Shell- led Sakhalin-II project.
 
Shell has struggled to increase its production and reserves amid cost overruns or delays at several major projects, including the Bonga deepwater oil field in Nigeria, which started in November, two years behind schedule.
 
Ivan Chernyakhovsky, a spokesman for Sakhalin Energy Investments, the operator of the project for Shell, said earlier by telephone from the site that he could not comment until he had a chance to review the ministry’s statement. A Shell spokesman in London made a similar statement.
 
“By way of measures to lower the risk, we suggest to suspend construction of the pipeline until state environmental expertise of the pipeline project in landslide prone parts is complete,” the ministry’s statement said. A ministry study began July 25 and will be completed Aug. 25. read more

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ShellNews.net: Potential catastrophic consequences if Sakhalin ERD wells allegations are true

THE POSTINGS ON LIVE CHAT

From a Shell Insider

The messages posted about the ERD wells through young faults and process facilities deserve to be highlighted. If true, these are both very serious issues.

Due to ice and fog, access to the Sakhalin offshore production facilities during the winter months is severely limited, and they are therefore designed to be operated unmanned. In the event that a fault is detected in
the production system, the facilities are designed to shut down automatically, cutting the supply of gas to the LNG plant onshore. Manual intervention, investigation and rectification of the fault are then required
prior to restarting. Faults are more likely to occur if the system design does not incorporate adequate contingency.
read more

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The Wall Street Journal: Russia Seeks Halt To Sakhalin Work Citing Mudslides

By a WALL STREET JOURNAL Staff Reporter
August 4, 2006

Russia’s Natural Resources Ministry called on a consortium led by Royal Dutch Shell PLC to suspend pipe-laying work at a giant oil and liquefied-natural-gas project on Sakhalin, citing possible mudslides on the Pacific island.

The statement came as the ministry began a monthlong audit of the Sakhalin II project, where negotiations have stalled between the Sakhalin Energy consortium and OAO Gazprom on the state-run natural-gas monopoly’s efforts to acquire a stake. That deal is seen as the Kremlin’s latest bid to ratchet up its control of the energy sector. read more

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The Wall Street Journal: Oil News Roundup: August 3, 2006 8:52 p.m.

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE

Oil futures fell slightly on the New York Mercantile Exchange as Tropical Storm Chris weakened, easing worries that oil production in the Gulf of Mexico would be disrupted. Here is Thursday’s roundup of energy-related news:

* * *
MOTHERROCK FALLS: One of the biggest New York hedge funds trading natural-gas futures, MotherRock L.P., is shutting down after suffering big losses in the natural-gas market in June and July. MotherRock, which at its peak in May managed about $430 million in assets, lost $230 million in June and July because of investor redemptions and movements in the natural-gas market. In 2005, MotherRock recorded net gains of 20%. read more

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Lloyds List: Study could further delay Sakhalin II

Published: Aug 04, 2006

LIQUEFIED natural gas exports from the $20bn Shell-led Sakhalin II project could be further delayed if pipeline construction activities are halted by ministry authorities, writes Martyn Wingrove.

Russia’s Natural Resources Ministry has asked Sakhalin Energy Investments Co to halt pipeline work over of concerns for safety and the environment.

The ministry is studying the potential of landslides along the course of the island-long pipelines that will link oil and gas fields in the north to a LNG plant and tanker terminal in the south. Officials anticipate the study could be completed by the end of this month, and could prepare a lawsuit to demand pipeline construction work is suspended operations do not stop. read more

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AP Worldstream: Nigeria must give more oil revenues to states to end conflict, think-tank says

By: KATHARINE HOURELD, AP Worldstream
Published: Aug 04, 2006

Nigeria’s government should open a dialogue with community leaders and more than double the amount of oil revenues to its 36 states to end militant attacks in the West African nation’s troubled delta region, a Brussels-based think-tank said.

Thursday’s call came as militants wearing camouflage uniforms took a German oil industry worker hostage in the oil city of Port Harcourt, spiriting him away on a boat into Nigeria’s delta region, police spokesman Ireju Barasua said. read more

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Irish Times: Objector has ‘no intention’ of dropping case

By: Lorna Siggins, Irish Times
Published: Aug 04, 2006

The largest landowner on the current Corrib gas onshore pipeline route has said that she has “no intention” of dropping her legal action against Shell E&P Ireland.

BrId McGarry was commenting on yesterday’s announcement by Shell that it intended to modify the route, and “review” its legal proceedings against objecting landowners.

The company said it intended to hold discussions with “the other parties” involved with a view to withdrawing its injunction application against objectors to the onshore pipeline. read more

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Irish Times: Shell set to resume work on gas terminal

EXTRACT: Shell’s legal representatives have sought meetings with solicitors for all six defendants, but two of them have signalled they intend to pursue their counter claim.

THE ARTICLE

By: Lorna Siggins, Marine Correspondent, Irish Times
Published: Aug 04, 2006

Shell E&P Ireland hopes to resume work on its Corrib gas terminal next month, following its confirmation that it intends to modify the route of the Corrib gas onshore pipeline near Rossport.

The company’s decision, announced yesterday, has been welcomed by Minister for the Marine Noel Dempsey, as a very positive development but has elicited a cautious response from both objectors and supporters of the onshore pipeline in north Mayo. Significantly, the company has also said it wishes to “review” its legal position in relation to ongoing High Court injunction proceedings. read more

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Irish Independent: Shell pledges new Corrib route

Published: Aug 04, 2006

Rossport Five group dismisses ‘tweaking’ of pipeline

SHELL has pledged to change the route of the Corrib gas pipeline in an attempt to get the 1bn project back on track.

The company is also promising to invest more of the proceeds in the local community and to withdraw its legal action against the Rossport Five, who were jailed for 94 days for their opposition to the project.

Alternative

It comes less than a week after the independent mediator Peter Cassels recommended an alternative route for the pipeline after finding that locals were concerned about its proximity to their houses. read more

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Financial Times: Total predicts return to growth after 9% decline in production

EXTRACT: “Total has been the worst performer this year among the big oil companies,” said Irene Himona, analyst with Exane BNP Paribas. “The newsflow has been negative with riots in Nigeria, nationalisation in Bolivia and tax increases in Argentina.  

By Peggy Hollingerin Paris

Published: August 4 2006 03:00 | Last updated: August 4 2006 03:00

Total, the French oil group, yesterday sought to take the sting out of a sharp decline in second-quarter production by declaring it the “low point” of the cycle and predicting a return to growth of at least 7 per cent next year. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellplc.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.