The Times
February 17, 2010
Robin Pagnamenta and Robert Lindsay
Royal Dutch Shell said that it would freeze the salaries of its top directors and reform a generous bonus scheme as the oil giant moved to soothe shareholders anger over excessive boardroom pay before its annual meeting.
In a letter to investors, Hans Wijers, the new chairman of the Anglo-Dutch companys remuneration committee, said that the changes were being made after extensive talks with shareholders, 60 per cent of whom voted down the executive pay plans at a stormy annual meeting last year.
The shareholder revolt triggered the resignation of Sir Peter Job, Mr Wijerss predecessor.
In the letter, Mr Wijers said that Shell would be capping the salaries of its top three executives Peter Voser, chief executive, Simon Henry, finance director, and Malcolm Brinded, head of exploration until 2011. He said that Mr Voser had been appointed last July on a salary 20 per cent lower than that of his predecessor, Jeroen van der Veer, who earned $2 million (£1.3 million) in basic pay in 2008 but $15 million in total compensation. Mr Wijers said that Mr Voser and Mr Henry had received pay rises last year but only because they had been promoted to new roles
He also announced plans to scrap a heavily criticised bonus scheme that last year allowed top directors to collect multimillion-pound payouts, even though they failed to meet performance targets.
I believe it is appropriate in the current economic environment to state up front that no upward discretion will be applied to the Long Term Incentive Plan or Deferred Bonus Plan vesting in 2010. In future, there will be no use of upward discretion in the vesting of these plans without prior shareholder engagement, Mr Wijers said.
Meanwhile, in an unprecedented move for a global oil group, Mr Wijers unveiled plans to link bonus payouts to Shells performance on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, which ranks corporate performance using a variety of social and environmental indicators, including cuts to carbon emissions.
From 2010, 10 per cent of the targets used to calculate payouts will be linked to the index, with the remaining 90 per cent related to operational and financial performance as well as the delivery of big projects on time and on budget. The key measure in Shells bonus plan remains the groups performance against its peers BP, Total, ExxonMobil and Chevron.
In another concession to investors, Mr Wijers said that in future Shells chief executive would be obliged to have shares in the company equivalent to three times his basic salary, in order to provide greater alignment with shareholder interests. The existing guidelines for executive directors are for a holding of two times salary.
Shells 2010 annual meeting will be held on May 18.
TIMES ARTICLE
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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.
