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August, 2007:

Arizona Daily Wildcat: Shell touts energy work

Shell Oil Co President John Hofmeister

Media Credit: Sam Shumaker
Shell President John Hofmeister speaks to a standing-room only crowd in the Student Union Memorial yesterday on the future of energy security and affordability in the United States.

Oil Co. president appeals to enter global warming sentiment
By: Claire Conrad
Issue date: 8/31/07
 
 
John Hofmeister, president of Shell Oil, spoke about energy security in the United States and fielded questions from a standing room-only crowd in the Kiva Room of the Student Union Memorial Center yesterday afternoon. 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.

OilWeek.com: Shell‘s application to stop northern B.C. blockade adjourned (Coalbed-Protest)

Aug 31, 2007 2:23:00 PM MST
 
VANCOUVER (CP) _ Native protesters blocking a coalbed methane project in northern B.C. can continue their blockade this weekend.

Shell Canada applied for a B.C. Supreme Court injunction to stop the blockade but the case has been adjourned indefinitely.

The company can bring its application forward again but only in Prince Rupert or Terrace, closer to the area the natives want to protect.

More than 100 people, including environmentalist David Suzuki, gathered outside the Vancouver courthouse to voice their opposition to the coalbed methane project. read more

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MarketWire.com: Shell Backs Away From Court Showdown Over Sacred Headwaters

Western Canada Wilderness Committee
Aug 31, 2007 15:08 ET

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA–(Marketwire – Aug. 31, 2007) – First Nations and concerned citizens in Vancouver and Smithers today say Royal Dutch Shell’s delay of legal action against the Sacred Headwaters blockaders shows Shell is concerned about growing opposition.

Members of the Tahltan First Nation are blockading Shell’s coalbed methane project in the Sacred Headwaters, the birthplace of the Skeena, Nass and Stikine Rivers. Shell was to appear in Vancouver court today to request an injunction that would allow them to have the blockaders arrested. 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.

The Arizona Republic: Not getting what you pay for at the pump

Ariz. shortchanged by the heat; activists pursue fairer fill-ups
Ryan Randazzo
Aug. 31, 2007 12:00 AM

Each time drivers fill their fuel tanks in Arizona’s simmering summers, they likely see $1 or more evaporate.

Because gasoline expands in the heat, that’s the estimated dollar amount of energy they purchase but they never receive.

Nobody serves hotter gas than stations in the Arizona desert, and after more than a year of discussion, debate over the issue is beginning to boil.

The state Department of Weights and Measures is taking fuel temperatures at gas stations and considering voluntary temperature compensation, while consumer advocates are pushing aggressively for changes. read more

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Energy Tribune: EXXONMOBIL Blocked at Russia’s Sakhalin

XOM Blocked at Russia’s Sakhalin

Posted on Aug. 31, 2007
By Pavel Romanov and Michael J. Economides

Exxon Mobil may be the world’s largest corporation, but it is no match for Russia’s “Energy Strategy” – the plan rolled out in 2002 by Putin’s government.

The central concept of the Russian Energy Strategy is simply re-nationalization, and the policy’s foundation is state control of the oil and gas sectors. Yukos, Sibneft, Shell, BP, Russneft, and Exxon Mobil have all lost control over their Russian energy assets, or are in the process of losing it. read more

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Globe & Mail: What me? Stop working? Clive Mather may be coming out of Shell Canada, but don’t call it retiring

DAVID EBNER
From Friday’s Globe and Mail
August 31, 2007 at 7:00 AM EDT

After three decades working for Royal Dutch Shell PLC, Clive Mather arrived in Calgary as the new CEO of Shell Canada in 2004. He quickly okayed a $12.8-billion expansion of Shell’s oil sands facilities and bought BlackRock Ventures Inc. for $2.4 billion. But Mather also called for action on global warming. In June, at age 59, he stepped down and returned to Surrey in England after Royal Dutch Shell bought the 22% of Shell Canada it didn’t already own for $8.7 billion. read more

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TheMoneyTimes.com: A Look at CNOOC

By Toby Shute – August 31, 2007
 
I’ve given PetroChina (NYSE: PTR) plenty of virtual ink around here lately, but it’s not the only exciting Chinese E&P story. CNOOC (NYSE: CEO), as a pure play on upstream offshore oil & gas activity, is also an interesting name, and with the release of the firm’s first-half results, I have occasion to dive into the company’s operations.

First-half production rose 4.5% to just more than 470,000 BOE per day. This growth, which slightly outpaced PetroChina’s pump-up, came entirely from natural gas — oil production was essentially flat. Oil prices, on the other hand, were decisively down, and that cut into revenues by roughly 7%. After factoring in higher exploration and operating expenses, as well as a windfall profit tax, net profit came in 11% lower than last 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.

hemscott.com: OMV “fundamentally” interested in British Isles E&P licenses, including Shell’

VIENNA (Thomson Financial) – OMV AG said it is “fundamentally” interested in looking at any oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) licenses for the British Isles that are offered up for sale, including any from Royal Dutch Shell PLC.

Shell recently said it is offering interested parties the opportunity to acquire equity by funding work programmes in five of its gas and oil licenses in Ireland, the United Kingdom and the Faroe Islands, including the William oil prospect and the Dooish gas condensate. Shell said that participation offers will be due on Oct 15. 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.

stuff.co.nz: Call for boycott of Shell

LEIGHTON KEITH
[email protected] – Taranaki | Saturday, 1 September 2007

New Plymouth business owner Greg Barley is boycotting Shell and urges all Taranaki residents to follow suit.

Mr Barley cancelled his petrol accounts with Shell in protest over the petrol company’s treatment of Gordon and Karen Mace, the owners of Junction Service Station at Awakino.

“Mr heart goes out to this hard-working family, who have put so much into their business and built up the asset value, only to be kicked in the guts by Shell,” he said. 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.

The Messenger: Shell bows out of Azerbaijan oil project, selling stake to South Korean company

Friday, August 31, 2007, #165 (1432)

Shell is ramping down its involvement in Azerbaijan, writes the news agency Regnum, as the global oil company hands most of its share in the undeveloped Inam project to South Korea.

On August 28, Seoul officials announced that South Korea’s National Oil Company signed an agreement with Shell in July to buy out 20 percent of Shell’s 25 percent stake in the BP-led project.

The state-owned Korean company says they’re waiting on confirmation from BP, the Azerbaijani government, and Azerbaijan’s state oil company, SOCAR. read more

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Reuters: Big money at stake as India weighs gas prices

Fri Aug 31, 2007 11:53AM IST 
By Hiral Vora

MUMBAI (Reuters) – Global oil majors such as Exxon Mobil, Royal Dutch Shell and Chevron Corp are ready to pour billions of dollars into India’s energy sector — but only if the government stops meddling and allows private firms to sell gas at market prices.

New Delhi is set to approve a price formula for Reliance Industries Ltd’s natural gas, according to local media, but any move to raise prices faces opposition from the politically influential power and fertiliser sectors, which consume three-quarters of the gas produced in India. read more

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Argus Media:Astana shows its hand on Kashagan

Kazakhstan is piling pressure on the consortium led by Italy’s Eni developing the 11.3bn bl Kashagan field in the Caspian, threatening to suspend the project completely.

The move appears designed to back up government demands for compensation, following revisions to the timetable and budget for development of the world’s biggest oil find in 30 years. Kazakhstan’s environment ministry has warned that work at Kashagan could be suspended. “We already have grounds to believe that the operator is not observing the requirements of Kazakhstan’s environmental legislation,” says environment minister Nurlan Iskakov. 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.

Fox 11 News: Shell president reveals gas prices high due to supply and demand

09:33 PM MST on Thursday, August 30, 2007
By Delane Cleveland, Fox 11 News

Delane Cleveland’s report Millions of Americans plan to travel this Labor Day weekend, but high gas prices may have a say in how far some people go.

Today, the president of the nation’s largest energy companies tells us why gas prices are so high.

Oil companies have earned record profits over recent years while Americans had to pay more at the pump. Nevertheless, Shell Oil Company President John Hofmeister says that is all due to supply and demand. read more

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The Wall Street Journal: Kazakhstan Presses Case

On Kashagan Oil Project
By GREGORY L. WHITE
August 31, 2007 9:23 a.m.

MOSCOW — The government of Kazakhstan expects compensation for what it sees as “tens of billions of dollars” of economic harm due to massive cost overruns and delays at the Kashagan oil project, led by Italy’s Eni SpA, a government official said Friday.

In a telephone interview, Deputy Finance Minister Daulet Ergozhin said Kazakh authorities are looking for more than just financial compensation from Eni and its partners, however. Mr. Ergozhin said Kazakh authorities want to see changes to the structure of the deal that would ensure smooth implementation in the future. read more

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Bloomberg: Shell Fined $48,825 for Safety Violations After Refinery Fire

By Sonja Franklin

Aug. 30 (Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Europe’s largest oil company, will be fined $48,825 for workplace safety violations at a refinery in Wilmington, California after a fire, said the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

The fines are for five violations that occurred during a fire six months ago. Shell violated an injury and illness prevention program, procedures for safe machinery and equipment maintenance as well as for the safe management of acutely hazardous materials, said Kate McGuire, a spokeswoman for the Administration’s branch in California, also known as Cal/OSHA. 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.

‘Le Tour de Sakhalin’ 2007: Some of the good guys doing good work at SEIC

In mid September a small group of Sakhalin Energy Investment Company employees will set off from Okha, the most northern town on Sakhalin Island, to cycle to Yuzhno, approximately 1200 kilometres to the south. Big deal, you might say, but wait a minute: they plan to do it in 10 days, on small tracks and on every condition of non-metalled road surface known to man.

The route will take the team down from Okha to Nogliki, to the Sakhalin Energy Onshore Processing Facility (OPF), and then across to the west of the island, through some pretty hairy country, back onto the main road (dirt track), and then out again to the west down almost as far as Kholmsk, and then finally home to Yuzhno, where they will be showered with Champagne and promised a life of fame and fortune. To the best of their knowledge, this has never been attempted before. 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.

Houston Chronicle: Refiners’ profit streak could fade

By BRETT CLANTON
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

Soaring gasoline prices this spring and summer may have pinched drivers, but they helped U.S. oil refiners rack up huge quarterly profits and extend a hot earnings run that began several years ago.

Refining profits for 22 of the largest energy companies jumped more than 20 percent to $11.8 billion in the April-to-June period this year compared with 2006, according to the U.S. Energy Department’s Energy Information Administration.

That’s nearly double their second-quarter profits three years ago, and a record since at least the first quarter of 2000, when the Energy Information Administration began regularly compiling the profit figures. 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.

Lloyds List: Kazakhstan puts squeeze on Kashagan partners

Martyn Wingrove, Lloyds List
Published: Aug 31, 2007

KAZAKHSTAN’s government has halted offshore operations at the world’s largest oilfield development to put pressure on a consortium of Western companies, writes Martyn Wingrove.

Work on the giant Kashagan project in the northern Caspian has stopped as Kazakh officials accuse operator Agip KCO of breaking environmental and safety rules.

Analysts believe Kazakhstan has suspended the work permit for three months to force the Agip KCO partners to renegotiate fiscal sections on the production sharing agreements. read more

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THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Turkmenistan’s Energy Rush

Wall Street Journal image

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Turkmenistan’s Energy Rush

Vast Natural-Gas Stores
Spur Scramble for Access
By U.S., Russia, Europe

By GUY CHAZAN
August 31, 2007; Page A5

With a new leader flinging open the doors to the outside world, the Central Asian nation of Turkmenistan is emerging as a crucible of regional rivalries as Russia, China, the U.S. and Europe compete for access to its vast energy reserves.

Since the death in December of Saparmurat Niyazov, an eccentric and reclusive dictator who charted a fiercely isolationist course for Turkmenistan, the country has begun to open up, unleashing a stampede of Western and Russian oil-and-gas men. 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.

The Times: Venture Production

31 August 2007

It has been one of the few disappointments among the Tempus Ten tips for 2007, but after a 25 per cent share price fall in the first three months of the year, Venture Production, the North Sea oil and gas explorer, has begun to claw its way back.

The announcement yesterday that it had raised £585 million of new debt, £350 million of it with Barclays Bank, should add to the momentum. At the start of the year, Venture was a seen as a potential takeover target, but now it is more of a predator. The new debt facility – coupled with a recent £200 million cash injection from the private equity groups 3i and ArcLight – means that Venture has about £1 billion at its disposal for acquisitions. 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.

The Guardian: Interview: Jeroen van der Veer: Oil boss sees no answers blowing in the wind

We must accept we’re going to depend on fossil fuels, and clean up as best we can, Shell chief tells greens

Terry Macalister
Friday August 31, 2007

In a week dominated by headlines about boardroom greed, the name of the chief executive at the company that on some measurements is Britain’s biggest has been noticeable by its absence.

Jeroen van der Veer, the head of Shell, earned £2.9m in 2006, pretty much average for FTSE-100 firms and almost a quarter of what was paid to his former business rival, Lord Browne at BP. read more

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Anchorage Daily News: Shell asks court to rethink ban on drilling

BEAUFORT: Oil giant says judges were mistaken in halting exploratory effort.

By WESLEY LOY
[email protected]
Published: August 30, 2007

Shell is asking a federal appeals court to reconsider its recent order blocking the Dutch oil giant’s plans to drill offshore exploratory wells in the Beaufort Sea this summer and fall.

A group of organizations opposed to the drilling has asked the court to reject Shell’s request.

Lawyers for Shell argue a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco “overlooked or misunderstood” significant points of law or fact in issuing an Aug. 15 order blocking the drilling. read more

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money.cnn.com: ExxonMobil In Talks To Sell Argentina Unit For $200 Million – Report

August 30, 2007: 10:55 AM EST

BUENOS AIRES -(Dow Jones)- ExxonMobil (XOM) is in talks to sell its Argentine unit for some $200 million in a deal being brokered by J.P. Morgan, local daily Clarin reported Thursday.

According to the report, ExxonMobil plans to sell all of its Argentine assets, including 90 directly operated service stations, a 500-station franchise, a refinery, three fuel loading docks, a lubricants plant, two jet fuel stations, and gas fields in the provinces of Salta and Neuquen.

The newspaper cited an ExxonMobil spokesman as saying “we can’t confirm nor deny this information.” ExxonMobil and J.P. Morgan representatives were not immediately available for additional comment. read more

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National Post: ‘…grand larceny, Kremlin-style’

EXTRACT: “…many other companies with no political interests have been threatened and strong-armed, up to and including major oil companies such as Shell and ExxonMobil”.

Is Magna going in, or is Oleg getting out?

30 August 2007

PETER FOSTER

Russian President Vladimir Putin has recently been flexing his muscles, both figuratively and literally.

He has also blatantly used the Russian judicial system to further the aims of the state and his business puppets. Hence the tie up between Frank Stronach’s Magna and Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska — which was approved by Magna shareholders this week — has aroused a good deal of concern about exactly what Magna is letting itself in for. 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.

Financial Post (Canada): Global oil reserves up only 1% last year

Canada’s Oilsands Sole Booster, Study Says

Claudia Cattaneo, Financial Post
Published: Thursday, August 30, 2007

CALGARY — Record global oil and gas profits of US$243-billion and record spending of US$401-billion have resulted in a marginal 1% increase in world oil reserves last year — all of it coming from a 1.9-billion-barrel addition from Canada’s oilsands, according to a new study.

Without Canada’s contribution, 228 public oil and gas companies active globally and included in the study would have collectively produced more oil than they found, John S. Herold, a U.S.-based independent petroleum research company, and Harrison Lovegrove & Co., a global oil and gas advisory firm, said in the 2007 Global Upstream Performance Review, released yesterday. 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.

Shell Pennzoil brand attacked in US court action

By John Donovan

Pennzoil-Quaker State Company (PQS) is seeking $1 million in damages from a Pennsylvanian resident, Keith R. Smith, for alleged trademark infringement, counterfeiting, dilution, unfair competition, false advertising and unjust enrichment.

The draconian legal proceedings brought against Smith are in his capacity as the owner of Lube Pro, a single bay quick oil change facility located in Butler County Pennsylvania. Pennzoil products are available through authorized oil-change outlets throughout the USA. 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.

Bloomberg: Norsk Hydro Tests Ormen Lange, Sees Gas Production in October

By Paul Dobson

Aug. 30 (Bloomberg) — Norsk Hydro ASA filled natural-gas pipes that connect Ormen Lange to an onshore processing plant as it prepares to start production at the 66 billion-krone ($11.3 billion) field.

The company, Norway’s second-largest oil producer, filled the pipes with gas produced at Statoil ASA’s Sleipner field after clearing them of water, Dag Ryen Ofstad, a spokesman for Hydro, said today in a phone interview. It also used gas from the Statoil field to test two of the three compressors needed for exports of gas via the Nyhamna processing plant. The third compressor is being tested, he added. 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.

This Day (Nigeria): Lawmakers Petition Presidency Over Oil Spillage

Okon Bassey,
Published: Aug 30, 2007

Worried by the refusal of the Anglo-Dutch oil Firm, Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), to stop the spill from its corked oil well in Ikot Ada Udo Village, Ikot Abasi Local Government, Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly has written a petition on Shell and sent to the Presidency and the National Assembly.

The Assembly is appealing to President Umaru Yar’Adua to compel SPDC to without further delay, respond to the spill.

The state lawmakers who described action of the oil giant as “unholy act,” said quick intervention by the Presidency, National Assembly and lawmakers from the state in the upper and lower chambers of the National Assembly would save the situation from further deterioration. read more

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Lloyds List: Statoil picks up Gulf of Mexico bids

Published: Aug 30, 2007

THE Norwegians have stormed the latest Gulf of Mexico lease sale to grab a large slice of deepwater exploration acreage, writes Martyn Wingrove.

State oil group Statoil made the highest bids of the 47 oil companies that participated in the US government’s latest exploration round, as it expands operations away from Europe.

Statoil submitted 40 bids for offshore acreage with a total value of $143m, almost three times as much as the nearest rival BP. The US Minerals Management Service, which is part of the Department of the Interior, attracted almost $290m in high bids from these 47 companies in the latest auction. read more

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Financial Times: Tings Dey Happen, Culture Project, New York

By Brendan Lemon
Published: August 30 2007 18:04 | Last updated: August 30 2007 18:04

Not long after graduating from Northwestern University, in 2003, the American Dan Hoyle went to Nigeria to study the oil business, and he returned home to fashion Tings Dey Happen.

This 90-minute solo show, now off-Broadway, gives us the tribal warlords, bush fighters, oilmen, politicians, and expats who are the players in the resource-rich Niger Delta, a region that provides the US with 10 per cent of its oil but which is less familiar to most westerners than the moon. 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.

Financial Times: Iraq on the lookout for joint ventures

By Steve Negus, Iraq Correspondent
Published: August 30 2007 03:00 | Last updated: August 30 2007 03:00

Iraq’s ministry of industry and minerals would open up all 65 of its state-owned enterprises to joint ventures with international investors by the end of the year, the minister said yesterday.

“We have 65 facilities under our banner and all of them will be made available for joint ventures,” Fawzi Hariri told the Financial Times yesterday. He was speaking at a conference in Dubai on investment opportunities in Iraq. read more

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The Wall Street Journal: Big Questions for Big Oil

Wall Street Journal Image

Big Questons for Big Oil

By SACHA KUMARIA
August 30, 2007

As summer draws rapidly to its conclusion, eyes are already turning to the colder months ahead and, inevitably, to the price of oil. In recent weeks, Goldman Sachs analysts have suggested that oil could reach $100 before the end of 2007.

A record number of options to buy oil at $100 a barrel have been sold. Some mainstream commentators are even raising the specter of $200 a barrel by mid-2008 if the risk premium — which industry estimates average at around $34 — increases in response to Iranian retaliation against further sanctions or growing unrest in Nigeria.
 
In such circumstances, one would expect such commentators to be bullish about the prospect for independent oil companies (IOCs) such as Exxon Mobil, Royal Dutch Shell and BP. Rising oil prices have pushed these companies’ profits sky-high over the past five years. Yet a growing number of industry voices suggest that the era of the vertically integrated supermajor may be over, and that IOCs have been unable to adapt to the new global business environment. 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.

Gulf Daily News: Shell-Dow in $2bn Iraq plant expansion talks

Thursday 30th August 2007 

DUBAI: Royal Dutch Shell and Dow Chemical are in talks with the Iraqi government to renovate and expand a chemical plant in southern Iraq at a cost of up to $2.1 billion, the Iraqi industry minister said.

The talks on creating a joint venture or reaching a profit-sharing agreement could be concluded this year, Fawzi Hariri said.

“We are looking to upgrade this, and evaluate what type of products and facilities we need for the local market and beyond,” Hariri said of the plant near the city of Basra. 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.

The Guardian: Rewards for failure debate follows BP boss into retirement

· Browne tops list with £1m a year despite bonus loss
· Incomes linked to salary for board, but not workers

Phillip Inman
Thursday August 30, 2007

The former BP chief executive, Lord Browne of Madingley, topped the executive pension league in 2006 with a retirement package worth more than £1m a year.

Close behind was Lawrence Fish, the head of Royal Bank of Scotland’s US operations. Mr Fish, 62, has so far accumulated an annual pension entitlement of £992,081.

A roll call of executives from Britain’s best-known large companies – Shell, Cadbury, Unilever, GlaxoSmithKline and Tesco – bulk out the rest of the list, showing that a final salary pension from a blue chip employer is still the best route to a financially secure retirement. 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.

The Moscow Times: Mitvol to Go on U.S. Lecture Tour

Thursday, August 30, 2007. Issue 3732. Page 7.
Bloomberg

Oleg Mitvol, the environmental regulator who threatened to halt a $20 billion Shell project last year, said Wednesday that he planned to advise U.S. fund managers on how to invest in Russia’s natural resources.

Mitvol will hold meetings with investors from Capital Research & Management, American Century Investments, Fidelity Investments, UBS, State Street and Wells Capital Management during a trip to the United States next week, the deputy head of Federal Service for the Inspection of Natural Resources Use said in a statement. 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.

Times Online: Shell in talks over $2.1bn Iraqi project

Iraqi Industry Minister reveals Shell is expected to team up with Dow Chemical to expand a chemical plant near Basra

August 29, 2007
Steve Hawkes

Shell is in talks with the Iraqi Government about restoring and expanding a chemical plant near the city of Basra in a $2.1 billion (£1.1 billion) project, it emerged today.

Fawzi Hariri, Iraq’s Industry Minister, revealed that the terms of an agreement with Shell and the US giant Dow Chemical could be concluded by the end of the year.

He told Reuters: “We are looking to upgrade this [plant], and evaluate what type of products and facilities we need for the local market and beyond.” read more

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KGET.com: State orders cleanup at polluted Bakersfield refinery

Last Update: 8/28 1:43 pm 

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (AP) – State regulators will force a polluted refinery’s owners to clean up decades worth of contaminated soil and groundwater lying beneath the facility.

The Big West Oil of California refinery in Bakersfield was partially shut down in June after releasing more than 1,000 barrels of oil from an underground pipeline.

Last week, the California Regional Water Quality Control Board issued a formal order requiring the refinery’s current and past owners to clean up the toxic mess, some of which dates to the mid-1980s.   read more

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Bloomberg: Shell Wants to Sell Some U.K., Irish, Faroe Oil, Gas Prospects

By Stephen Voss

Aug. 29 (Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc is seeking buyers for stakes in several oil and natural-gas exploration assets off the coast of the U.K., Ireland and Faroe Islands, a Schlumberger Ltd. energy asset marketing Web site said.

Shell is offering U.K. license P799, including the South Uist gas prospect, Irish licenses 2/94 and 2/05, which include the Dooish gas condensate discovery, and Faroe licenses 007 and 009, which include the William oil prospect, the site said.

An online data room opened yesterday and offers are due Oct. 15, the Web site said. Officials at Shell’s Aberdeen press office didn’t immediately return a phone call seeking comment. read more

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Reuters: UPDATE 1-Shell, Dow in talks on $2.1 bln Iraq chemical plant

Wed Aug 29, 2007 12:22 PM BST

DUBAI, Aug 29 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile , Research) and Dow Chemical (DOW.N: Quote, Profile , Research) are in talks with the Iraqi government to rehabilitate and expand a chemical plant in southern Iraq at a cost of up to $2.1 billion, the Iraq industry minister said.

The talks on creating a joint venture or reaching a profit- sharing agreement could be concluded this year, Fawzi Hariri told Reuters in Dubai on Wednesday on the sidelines of an Iraq reconstruction conference. read more

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Predatory practices of Royal Dutch Shell: The Wexco Case

By John Donovan

We recently published an article about how the management of Shell Oil Products in the USA had for a number of years turned a blind eye to a lube chain in Illinois blending Shell’s Pennzoil oil brand with a cheaper product and selling it to consumers as Pennzoil.

Apart from the consumer fraud aspect, Shell management also failed to protect Shell employees from threats of violence by the management of the lube chain, The Grease Spot, Inc. The lube chain and Shell Oil Company both had reasons to keep a lid on the scandal. read more

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The Canadian Press: Oilpatch wondering who will use power from proposed Alberta nuclear plant

JAMES STEVENSON
August 28, 2007

(CP) – Bold plans to bring nuclear power to northern Alberta were unveiled Tuesday, but just exactly who’ll be using most of the megawatts remained a mystery even to many in the oilpatch.

It’s assumed that Energy Alberta Corp.’s proposed $6.2-billion project to put a Candu twin reactor in the sparsely populated Peace River area in the province’s northwestern corner is all about the oilsands, which require an immense amount of energy to squeeze oil from the ground. read more

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Grand Junction Daily Sentinel (Colorado): Penry urges caution on oil shale as lawmakers worry about water

EXTRACT: It’s too early to tell how thirsty Royal Dutch Shell’s in situ oil shale extraction process is, especially on a commercial scale, company spokeswoman Jill Davis said.  

By BOBBY MAGILL The Daily Sentinel
Wednesday, August 29, 2007

With oil shale and other Western Slope and Front Range interests at stake in how the remainder of the Colorado River Basin’s water will be divvied up, Sen. Josh Penry, R-Grand Junction, said Monday he believes oil shale extraction technology needs to be proven before the government can speculate about how much water it will consume. read more

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Bloomberg: Shell, Exxon Allowed to Expand Wadden Sea Gas Output (Update1)

By Fred Pals and Marcel van de Hoef

Aug. 29 (Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Exxon Mobil Corp. will be allowed to expand its natural gas production in a wetlands area in northeast Netherlands, a government court said today, overruling objections from environmental groups.

Shell and Exxon’s Dutch venture, Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij BV, had been awarded permits last year to increase production as it seeks a return on an investment of more than 300 million euros ($400 million) to date. Environmentalists were seeking the revocation of those permits. read more

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Business News Americas: Shell opening 100th VNG service station – Brazil

Published: Aug 29, 2007

(Business News Americas) – The Brazilian unit of Anglo-Dutch oil company Shell (NYSE: RDS-B) was due to open its 100th VNG service station in the country on August 29, the company said in a statement. The new station is in Pernambuco state. Shell aims to have 110 VNG service stations in service by year-end, up from 55 in early 2006. According to Brazil’s oil association IBP, Brazil has 1.4mn VNG-fueled vehicles. – (Business News Americas)

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New Straits Times (Malaysia): Shell and TV3 video jingle on road safety

Published: Aug 29, 2007

PETALING JAYA: Shell Malaysia, in association with TV3, has come up with a video jingle on road safety, featuring the popular comedy group, Senario.

The video jingle, supported by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Transport, will be aired today and is tailor-made for youngsters.

It will convey the importance of following traffic regulations.

Shell Malaysia launched the catchy and entertaining public message yesterday as an integral part of its 50th annual Shell Traffic Games, a nationwide competition promoting road safety awareness. “To ensure our roads are used responsibly and courteously, we need to get that safety message out to as many people as possible, and also make sure they listen and take notice,” Shell Malaysia chairman Datuk Saw Choo Boon said at the launch. read more

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AAP News (Australasia): SA: Motor club urges a second look at petrol vouchers

ADELAIDE, Aug 29 AAP – South Australia’s motoring body has called on the consumer watchdog to reinvestigate the impact of supermarket discount vouchers on competition in the petrol market.

In its submission to the petrol price inquiry, the Royal Automobile Association (RAA) said while the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) had already reported on discount vouchers, significant market share had since been gained by Coles and Woolworths through their affiliations with Shell and Caltex. read more

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Philippine Daily Inquirer: Tax credit scam witness laments slow justice

Michelle V. Remo,
Published: Aug 29, 2007

THE MAIN WITNESS TO THE MULTIBILlion-peso tax credit scam has asked Finance Secretary Margarito Teves to help speed up the resolution of the case that has dragged on for more than a decade.

Unfortunately, it appears that government efforts to recover the lost revenues in the tax credit fraud and punish its author cannot take off, for one reason or another, said the lawyer of witness Felix Chingkoe in an Aug. 22 letter to Teves.

Felix Chingkoe is the brother of Faustino Chingkoe, the main suspect in the tax credit fraud perpetrated in the 1990s that resulted in the government losing more than P5 billion worth of revenues. read more

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Financial Times: Notebook: Swearing blind in the Commons

By Sue Cameron
Published: August 28 2007 19:20 | Last updated: August 28 2007 19:20

As the political circus starts up again, stand by for more suggestions on how Gordon Brown can meet his pledge to “rebalance power between parliament and government”. One idea from Quentin Letts, writing in The Observer, is that witnesses to Commons select committees should be forced to give evidence on oath – as happens in the US and New Zealand. Make witnesses realise that parliament is a high court and that they should stand in awe of it, says Mr Letts. read more

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The Guardian: Kazakhs halt Shell oil project

Terry Macalister
Wednesday August 29, 2007

Shell has run into trouble over another big oil project in the former Soviet Union with the government of Kazakhstan halting development of the Kashagan field alleging environmental violations and cost over-runs in a move with ominous similarities to the Sakhalin-2 row.

Shell is one of a number of western partners in the Agip Kazakhstan North Caspian Operating Company along with ENI of Italy and ExxonMobil of America in the Kashagan field – one of the biggest oil discoveries ever with commercial reserves of up to 16bn barrels of oil. A spokesman for Shell said the company could not comment. He added: “It’s a matter for the operator [ENI].” read more

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The Guardian: Women bosses left behind by men’s pay

EXTRACT: Just behind Dame Marjorie on the list of female executives came Linda Cook at Shell, who was paid £1.9m in 2006. Ms Cook runs the gas and power division at the Anglo-Dutch oil group. An American who has been with Shell since leaving the University of Kansas, she is also a non-executive director of the aircraft manufacturer Boeing.

THE ARTICLE

Terry Macalister
Wednesday August 29, 2007

The pay gap between men and women is as wide in the boardroom as it is lower down the company, reinforcing the glass ceiling barring equal opportunities. read more

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