July 15th, 2007:

Headline: Canary Wharf targets Docklands and the City for massive building projects

EXTRACT: Property sources said Canary Wharf is also keen on bidding for Shell Centre on the South Bank. This 2.2hectare site could be turned into a 102,000 sq m complex. Royal Dutch Shell has lined up CB Richard Ellis, the agents, for a possible sale of the site.

July 16, 2007
James Rossiter

The Canary Wharf Group is planning a huge new speculative building project in its Docklands estate, at the same time as eyeing up building opportunities in Central London, including the redevelopment of Bucklersbury House, the City’s largest new scheme for 25 years. read more

Sunday 15 July 2007: By Alfred Donovan

We have provided what may be some helpful information for any current or former Shell employees, or anyone else who has had dealings with Shell over the years, and would like to know what Shell has been saying about them in private. There is no time limit on relevant documents. Shell has supplied us with internal documents stretching back a decade.

Remember that ours was a complicated application involving several High Court actions and other litgation. A normal application will be much simpler. Shell will supply a questionnaire to complete. read more

5:00AM Sunday July 15, 2007
By Michelle Coursey

The two New Zealand men kidnapped in Nigeria for a week arrived home to relieved family in Wellington yesterday.

New Plymouth resident Bruce Klenner, 47, and Brent Goddard, 49, of Wellington, were released in the Niger Delta last Wednesday.

Klenner’s wife Linda confirmed her husband was home safe and well.

“He just wants to tell everybody he’s fine and pleased to be home. Now we’re going to have a bit of time together… But I think the public need to know, because they have given us so much support.” read more

Published: Sunday, 15 July, 2007, 02:35 AM Doha Time
 
LONDON: For decades, billions of dollars worth of natural gas have gone up in smoke, sending tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, but dwindling energy supplies and rising gas prices could start to make a difference.

Historically, producers flared gas found in association with oil if it was too difficult and too costly to bring to market.

Concerns carbon emissions are causing global warming have added urgency to international efforts to end the practice. read more

Web posted at: 7/15/2007 8:33:53
Source ::: REUTERS

WASHINGTON • A World Bank panel is probing possible violations of bank procedures around its funding for the West African Gas Pipeline operated by Chevron Corp.

Washington-based environmental group Friends of the Earth said yesterday the investigation by the bank’s Inspection Panel will officially begin on July 15.

The probe follows complaints by 12 communities around the Badagry area in southwest Nigeria, who claim the project would damage land, destroy livelihoods and pollute fishing areas. read more

Edited by Iain Dey, Sunday Telegraph
Last Updated: 1:26am BST 15/07/2007

Warnings that the world is running out of oil are usually met with a heavy dose of scepticism but last week’s report by the International Energy Agency, predicting a supply crunch in five years, has hit home. According to the IEA, demand is expected to rise more than 2 per cent annually but supply will not keep pace.

This imbalance helps explain why the oil price keeps rising; crude prices were trading at $71 a barrel last week. read more

EXTRACT: A big hitter with a claim to the title of Mr Carbon is Garth Edward, trading manager for environmental products at Shell, the oil major, who worked at Natsource, an American company that was one of the first brokers of greenhouse-gas trades.

THE ARTICLE

July 15, 2007

Farmer Rash has a spring in his step again because of green diesel
By Jenny Davey

FARMING is in the blood for Stephen Rash. His is the fourth generation to run Hall Farm in Suffolk: 970 acres growing cereals, field beans and oilseed rape in the sleepy parish of Wortham. Rash, 51, describes himself as an eternal optimist but during the last decade it has not been easy to maintain enthusiasm as grain mountains sprouted in Europe and cereal prices plunged. Despite his working sometimes 90-hour weeks, Hall Farm barely scraped a profit. read more

Published: 15 July 2007

Controversial Russian environmental regulator Oleg Mitvol has given the all-clear to ExxonMobil over its $10bn (£5bn) Sakhalin I oil and gas project. Mr Mitvol said the results of his inspections, due out later this month, had not uncovered any major problems. This means it is less likely that the US company will be forced to dilute its 30 per cent stake or stop operating altogether. Mr Mitvol targeted Shell, which had to cede control of the larger Sakhalin II project to Gazprom. read more

With reserves running dry in non-Opec countries, rumours of a marriage could finally come true. Even a combined group, though, might struggle in its quest for more black gold. David Strahan reports

Published: 15 July 2007

BP and Shell are finally set to merge. That’s if you believe the tittle-tattle in the Square Mile.

Of course rumours that the energy giants might unite are hardly new and have been the stuff of bankers’ fevered imaginations for years. But there is now an increasingly compelling case for the two to integrate. read more