Mon Oct 8, 2007 1:18pm BST
(The following statement was released by the ratings agency)
Oct 8 – Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services said today that it revised its outlook on international oil and gas integrated company Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile, Research) and its Canadian subsidiary Shell Canada Ltd. to positive from stable.
At the same time, the ‘AA/A-1+’ long- and short-term corporate credit ratings on both entities were affirmed.
“The outlook revision follows Shell’s consolidation of its excellent business profile over the past two years, by continually improving upstream operating performance and maintaining solid downstream performance,” said Standard & Poor’s credit analyst Emmanuel Dubois-Pelerin.
The ratings on Shell reflect its very strong business portfolio in both upstream and downstream activities, its position as one of the three largest global private integrated oil companies in the world, and its very conservative financial profile and policies.
We continue to equalize the ratings on Shell Canada with those on Shell.
The positive outlook reflects Shell’s ongoing improvements in its upstream track record of reserve replacement, production growth, project execution, and capital cost containment.
“We expect these improvements at Shell to continue and will consider a one-notch upgrade following steady progress over several quarters, as long as Shell does not encounter significant hitches on its very large upstream projects and even if debt increases slightly,” said Mr. Dubois-Pelerin.
We anticipate that Shell will maintain a very conservative financial profile and policies, along with strong downstream performance. Under our conservative pricing scenario (including $40/barrel West Texas Intermediate and $5/thousand cubic feet Henry Hub prices starting in 2010), we expect FFO at close to $ 25 billion assuming that the funding of pension and retiree medical obligations does not deteriorate (overfunded at 106% at year-end 2006).
At either ‘AA’ or ‘AA+’ rating levels, we expect adjusted FFO to cover debt at approximately 70% or more, offset by slightly negative free cash flow after capital expenditures and dividends.
© Reuters 2007. All rights reserved.
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.
