December 11th, 2006:

December 12, 2006
Carl Mortishead, International Business Editor

Firms to have subcontractor role
Shell faces fight over Siberian field
 
Foreign energy companies will be welcome in future as subcontractors but not as owners in Russia’s energy industry, the Kremlin signalled yesterday as Gazprom moved closer towards wresting control of Sakhalin-2, the giant Siberian gas project, from Royal Dutch Shell. 
 
The Russian gas giant confirmed that Shell had made a new proposal in negotiations over Gazprom’s participation in Sakhalin Energy, the company building a $20 billion (£10.2 billion) liquefied natural gas scheme in Eastern Siberia. read more

· Russia seizes control of world’s biggest liquefied gas project
· Shell forced to give up controlling stake after pressure from Kremlin

Terry Macalister, Tom Parfitt in Moscow
Tuesday December 12, 2006

Shell is being forced by the Russian government to hand over its controlling stake in the world’s biggest liquefied gas project, provoking fresh fears about the Kremlin’s willingness to use the country’s growing strength in natural resources as a political weapon.

After months of relentless pressure from Moscow, the Anglo-Dutch company has to cut its stake in the $20bn Sakhalin-2 scheme in the far east of Russia in favour of the state-owned energy group Gazprom. read more

(Lucian Kim / Bloomberg
A Sakhalin Energy employee taking in the view at the LNG plant at Shell’s Sakhalin-2 facilities on Sakhalin Island)

Tuesday, December 12, 2006. Issue 3559. Page 1.
By Miriam Elder
Staff Writer  

Shell succumbed to months of creeping state pressure on Monday, offering Gazprom new terms of entry into its key Sakhalin-2 project.

Shell CEO Joroen van der Veer held talks in Moscow on Friday with Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller and Industry and Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko, spokespeople at Shell and Gazprom said. read more

(Marina Lystseva / Itar-Tass
Oleg Mitvol inspecting energy facilities on a recent tour of Sakhalin Island.)

By Miriam Elder
Staff Writer  
Tuesday, December 12, 2006. Issue 3559. Page 1.

Oleg Mitvol loves to grab the headlines. He barges onto private oil fields unannounced, takes posses of reporters on environmental inspections and wreaks havoc with share prices by threatening to pull licenses from multibillion-dollar projects.

How Mitvol came to be an environmental crusader and a thorn in the side of foreign oil companies is just one of the mysteries that surround the former businessman. Before landing the seemingly obscure job as deputy head of the Natural Resources Ministry’s environmental watchdog, Mitvol was a business partner of Boris Berezovsky, the Kremlin insider-turned-critic. read more

12/11/2006 05:24:14 PM EST
EIU ViewsWire Russia
COUNTRY BRIEFING

Shell has reportedly offered to cede control of the Sakhalin-2 project to Gazprom, the state-controlled gas giant. Although Gazprom’s entry to Sakhalin-2 has been expected for some time, the news that it has been offered a majority stake—in return for unspecified assets—is surprising and underlines the weakness of foreign investors in the face of Russia’s energy nationalism. For foreign investors in other oil and gas projects, the Sakhalin-2 episode sets a worrying precedent. read more

(Amid allegations of unfair pressure by the Russian authorities, who accuse Shell of breaking environmental rules, the Anglo-Dutch group is set to cede an initial 25% stake in the Sakhalin gas project to the Russian state-owned energy group, Gazprom.)

Terry Macalister and Tom Parfitt
Monday December 11, 2006

Shell and its partners have bent to mounting pressure from the Russian government and offered to hand over a controlling interest in the $20bn Sakhalin-2 energy project to the state-owned energy group, Gazprom. read more

Published: December 11 2006 18:34 | Last updated: December 11 2006 18:34

The Kremlin has once again forced the owners of a prize Russian energy asset to cede control. This time, the victims are Shell and its partners in the $20bn Sakhalin-2 gas project who have been pressed to surrender a majority stake to Gazprom, the gas monopoly.

Shell is still negotiating the terms with Gazprom, but should expect no favours. The Russians have the whip hand, and they know it. It is another poor day for the rule of law and the sanctity of contract. It bodes ill for other foreign groups in the Russian energy sector, not least BP, which through its BP-TNK joint venture controls the giant Kovykta gas deposit – another asset coveted by Gazprom. read more

By Ed Crooks: Published: December 11 2006 18:48
Last updated: December 11 2006 18:48

Jeroen Van der Veer, Royal Dutch Shell’s chief executive, likes to talk about “elephant projects”.

Most people might call them mammoth, he says, but he prefers to call them elephants, because they are not extinct. By 2015, he says, he wants the company to have 10 of these huge oil and gas projects, driving forward the company’s growth over the coming decade. Now one of his elephants has been frozen in the Russian ice. read more

By Arkady Ostrovsky and Neil Buckley: Published: December 11 2006 18:48 | Last updated: December 11 2006 18:48

However crude or unacceptable Russia’s methods may seem to foreign investors, the Kremlin is still prepared to use them.

The months of pressure on Royal Dutch Shell over alleged environmental violations by its Sakhalin-2 development were widely suspected to be a cover for an attempt to secure Gazprom a substantial stake in the project.

And now Shell has offered to cede control over the $22bn venture to the state-controlled gas giant. read more

Mon Dec 11, 2006 2:04 PM GMT
By Tom Miles and Dmitry Zhdannikov

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Shell’s experience in Russia proves the Kremlin has slammed the door on foreign investors who want control of strategic projects — and other investors would do well to take heed, analysts and fund managers said on Monday.

Industry sources have told Reuters that Royal Dutch Shell has offered to cede control of its $22 billion (11 billion pound) Sakhalin-2 project to state gas monopoly Gazprom after months of government pressure. read more

EXTRACT: “If the proposal contains a majority stake, then it’s a major breakthrough for Gazprom,” said Jeffrey Woodruff, an energy analyst with Fitch Ratings in Moscow. “It would be a setback for Shell, because it was counting on Sakhalin-2 to boost production and reserves.”

THE ARTICLE

Bloomberg News, Reuters, The Associated PressPublished: December 11, 2006
 
MOSCOW: Royal Dutch Shell said Monday that it had made a new offer to Gazprom on terms for the state-controlled Russian natural gas giant to join a Shell-controlled energy project off the Pacific island of Sakhalin. read more

December 11, 2006
Michael Binyon in Moscow
 
Royal Dutch Shell’s decision to hand over control of the $22 billion energy project in Sakhalin to Russia’s state monopoly Gazprom is a victory for Russia’s new hardline policy on energy. It is also a warning to Western business that investment in Putin’s Russia still carries real risks. 
 
Shell’s decision to reduce its 55 per cent stake in the huge Sakhalin-2 project comes after months of growing pressure on the energy multinational. It has been clear for months the Moscow was determined to seize back control of its energy assets and was looking for any excuse to break the deal made a decade ago. This was a production-sharing agreement, which gave Shell control of the energy assets and did not begin to pay Russia income from Sakhalin’s gas production until Shell has covered its exploration costs. read more

PRESS CONFERENCE IN MOSCOW TOMORROW

By GREG WALTERS
December 11, 2006 7:23 a.m.

MOSCOW — Royal Dutch Shell PLC made new proposals on its 55%-owned Sakhalin-2 oil-and-gas development to prospective partner OAO Gazprom, Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov said Monday, in an apparent attempt by the Anglo-Dutch oil major to push the troubled project forward.

Shell Chief Executive Jeroen van der Veer met Friday with Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller and Russia’s Minister of Industry and Energy Viktor Khristenko, both companies said, but neither company would give further details of the talks. “The discussions were positive and constructive, but the contents remain confidential,” a spokesman for Shell said. read more

Public Radio Transcript. Monday, December 11, 2006

Shell has offered to give up control of a $22 billion oil and gas project in Russia after months of pressure from the Kremlin. Stephen Beard reports.

MARK AUSTIN THOMAS: The Anglo-Dutch energy company Shell has caved in to pressure from the Kremlin. It has offered to give up control of a giant oil and gas project in Russia. That word from the Reuters news agency this morning. From London, Stephen Beard reports.

STEPHEN BEARD: The Sakhalin 2 natural gas project on the Russian Pacific Island of Sakhalin is the biggest of its kind. It’s costing $22 billion to develop. read more

11 Dec 2006 12:12:28 GMT
Source: Reuters
By Douglas Busvine

MOSCOW, Dec 11 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell has offered to cede control of the $22 billion Sakhalin-2 project, Russia’s biggest single foreign investment, to state gas monopoly Gazprom after months of government pressure, industry sources said.

Such a deal would appear to mark a victory for the Kremlin, determined to wrest control over the “commanding heights” of the Russian economy, and a retreat by Shell .

Agreement in principle was reached at talks last week for Shell to reduce its 55 percent holding to a blocking stake of at least one-quarter in the world’s largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, the sources told Reuters. read more

MOSCOW. Dec 11 (Interfax) – Natural Resources Minister Yury Trutnev has ordered the dismissal of Vladimir Rylkov, head of the Federal Nature Usage Supervisory Service’s department in the Yamal-Nenets autonomous district, service deputy head Oleg Mitvol told Interfax on Monday.

He said Trutnev confirmed the dismissal at a Friday meeting of the ministry board and the Prosecutor General’s Office.

Rylkov was fired following an inspection of the Yamalzoloto Company, a subsidiary of UK-based Peter Hambro. read more

…Russian gas and oil giants Gazprom, Rosneft, and Zarubezhneft may be combined into a single government monopoly… 

Dec. 11, 2006
Such a Company

On Saturday Russian President Vladimir Putin held a meeting of the Russian Security Council at which a new strategy that would give the government control of gas and oil extraction from the Russian shelf was discussed.

It is hoped that the shelf will be Russia’s main energy resource base for the 21st century. To achieve this goal, the strategy calls for an end to joint-venture projects and a renewed focus on Russia’s home-grown strengths. read more

Published: Dec 11, 2006

A S OIL exports start to flow to India and other parts of Asia from a new field near the Russian Pacific coast, can the region count on Russia as a reliable supplier of energy? As Australia’s proven reserves meet a decreasing portion of national demand, can it also look to Russia for oil? Russia is a key player in the energy game because it is the world’s largest exporter of natural gas and the second- biggest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia. It also has the potential to become an even bigger supplier to other countries. read more

Published: Dec 11, 2006

Chevron is calling on the WA Government to approve its plan to build a US$19.6bn (A$24.9bn) gas facility in Barrow Island. The energy giant’s Gorgon project was rejected by the Environmental Protection Authority in June because it was a threat to the species that lived in the vicinity. Chevron and partners Exxon Mobil and Shell hope the government will be able to overrule the EPA so they could begin as scheduled in mid-2007.

Published: Dec 11, 2006

Royal Dutch Shell PLC has made a new offer to OAO Gazprom on terms for the state-controlled Russian natural gas giant joining a Shell-controlled energy project off the Pacific island of Sakhalin, a Russian news agency reported Monday.

Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov was quoted by Interfax as saying that Shell Chief Executive Jeroen van der Veer made “a number of proposals” to Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller about the massive liquefied natural gas project at a meeting Friday, but he gave no details. read more

By Rebecca Bream
Published: December 11 2006 10:13 | Last updated: December 11 2006 10:13

Royal Dutch Shell confirmed on Monday that it has held fresh talks with Gazprom about the status of its $20bn Sakhalin-2 liquefied natural gas project off the far east coast of Russia, amid reports that Shell is under pressure to give up control of the project.

Sakhalin Energy, the joint venture running Sakhalin-2, is 55 per cent-owned by Shell and the rest by Mitsui and Mitsubishi, the Japanese trading companies. However, Gazprom, the Russian gas monopoly, is interested in taking a stake in the huge project, which is currently Russia’s biggest single foreign investment. read more

By REUTERS
Published: December 11, 2006
Filed at 4:35 a.m. ET

ALGIERS (Reuters) – The United States embassy urged Americans in Algeria to check their personal security on Monday after a bus carrying foreign oil workers was bombed in the first attack on Western expatriates in many years.

A Warden Notice for the estimated 800 U.S. expatriates said the embassy in the oil- and gas-exporting north African nation would be open for normal business “but is encouraging Americans in Algiers to review their security situation. read more

Published: December 11 2006 09:51 | Last updated: December 11 2006 09:51

The big story we are working on this morning is that it seems as if Royal Dutch Shell has agreed to give up control of its Sakhalin-2 project to Gazprom.

This follows months of government pressure but some of the reports out of Russia on this topic have been conflicting, as different Russian officials have different agendas.

According to Reuters, both companies confirmed that their chief executives met in Moscow on Friday but wouldn’t elaborate. The wire says Shell has agreed to cut its 55 per cent to a blocking minority stake. We need more details but Shell shares are down 1 per cent. A lot of foreign companies active in Russia have a lot to fear from this news if it is correct, not least BP. read more

Mon Dec 11, 2006 4:41am ET

Dec 11 (Reuters) – Gazprom (GAZP.MM: Quote, Profile , Research), the world’s biggest gas producer, has been expanding steadily around the globe.

Industry sources told Reuters on Monday Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile , Research) had offered to cede control of the $22 billion Sakhalin-2 project, Russia’s biggest single foreign investment, to Gazprom after months of government pressure.

Following are Gazprom’s expansion plans in Russia, the rest of Europe, Asia and the United States. read more

12:44 | 11/ 12/ 2006 

MOSCOW, December 11 (RIA Novosti) – Royal Dutch Shell has put new proposals to Gazprom [RTS: GAZP] on the Russian energy giant’s participation in the vast Sakhalin II liquefied natural gas project in the country’s Far East, a Gazprom spokesman said Monday.

Project operator Sakhalin Energy, controlled by Shell, has been under scrutiny since September, when the Natural Resources Ministry canceled its 2003 approval of Sakhalin II.

“On December 8 Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller held a working meeting with Shell CEO Jeroen van der Veer,” Sergei Kupriyanov said. “Van der Veer put several proposals to Gazprom on the Sakhalin II project. The proposals are now being analyzed. A decision on them will be made with account for all existing problems, including environmental ones.” read more

12.11.06, 4:13 AM ET

LONDON (AFX) – Royal Dutch Shell PLC has declined to detail the outcome of Friday’s talks between the Anglo-Dutch oil group and Russian gas monopoly Gazprom regarding the 20 bln usd Sakhalin-2 gas project.

A Shell spokesman in London said ‘Sakhalin-2 related issues were discussed’ during the meeting between Shell chief executive Jeroen van der Veer and his Gazprom counterpart, Alexei Miller.

Russian energy minister Viktor Khristenko also attended the meeting, he added. read more

December 11, 2006
Ashling O’Connor in Bombay

High-profile issue of 329m shares
Developing three promising oilfields
 
India’s biggest initial public offering starts today when Cairn Energy, the British oil and gas exploration company, launches its Indian subsidiary.

Nearly 329 million shares in Cairn India, or 18 per cent of the equity, go on sale to Indian investors in a high-profile launch expected to be heavily oversubscribed. The offer, which closes on Friday, aims to raise $1.4 billion (£720 million).
 
Cairn India shares have been priced between 160 and 190 rupees (£1.80-£2.20), giving the group a market value between $6.3 billion and $7.5 billion. This puts it in the top 25 companies on the Indian stock exchange. read more

December 11, 2006
TIMES ONLINE AND AGENCIES 

Shell has agreed in principle to cede control of the $22 billion (£11 billion) Sakhalin-2 project to Russian gas monopoly Gazprom after months of government pressure.   

Reuters reports, quoting unidentified sources, that an accord whereby Shell would keep a blocking stake of at least a quarter in the world’s largest liquefied natural gas project was reached on Friday at talks between Shell chief executive Jeroen van der Veer and Gazprom’s head Alexei Miller. read more

AMSTERDAM (AFX) – Royal Dutch Shell has handed over control over Sakhalin II, the large oil and gas extraction project in Russia, to Gazprom, Dutch news agency ANP reported, citing sources in the industry.

Shell now has a 55 pct stake in Sakhalin II, the ANP said.

According to the new set-up, Shell has a ‘blocking minority’ of at least a quarter in the project, in which around 22 bln usd has been invested, the ANP said.

ANP said the agreement was apparently reached Friday during talks between Shell chief executive Jeroen van der Veer and Gazprom chief executive Alexei Miller. read more

By Torrey Clark

Dec. 11 (Bloomberg) — OAO Gazprom said Royal Dutch Shell Plc made new proposals for the $22 billion Sakhalin-2 oil and gas venture, following months of criticism by the Russian government over the project’s environmental record.

“We are analyzing the proposals,” Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov said today in an e-mailed response to questions. “A decision will be made taking into consideration the Sakhalin-2 project’s existing problems, including environmental.” He declined to elaborate. read more

By Douglas Busvine

MOSCOW, Dec 11 (Reuters) – Oil major Shell has agreed in principle to cede control of the $22 billion Sakhalin-2 project to Russian gas monopoly Gazprom after months of government pressure, industry sources say.

An accord whereby Shell would keep a blocking stake of at least a quarter in the world’s largest liquefied natural gas project was reached on Friday at talks between Shell CEO Jeroen van der Veer and Gazprom’s head Alexei Miller.

Gazprom had no immediate comment, while a Shell spokesman confirmed that a meeting had taken place. read more