A public inquiry into plans to redevelop the Shell Centre on the South Bank has begun.

The inquiry, which is expected to sit for a total of 12 days between now and mid-December, is being held at Hercules House near Lambeth North Station.

Planning inspector John Braithwaite has been appointed to report to communities secretary Eric Pickles on the proposed redevelopment of the Shell Centre.

Plans by developers Braeburn Estates to demolish most of the oil company’s office complex apart from the main tower and build new offices, shops and nearly 900 homes on the site were approved by Lambeth councillors in May. read more

Some of the world’s largest oil traders including Vitol Group, Morgan Stanley and Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA) are asking a judge to stop the disclosure of millions of records gathered by the top U.S. commodity regulator during its nationwide investigation of the crude markets. The haul includes e-mails, depositions, trading records and audio files obtained by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission… Last month, four longtime traders on the New York Mercantile Exchange filed a lawsuit claiming they can prove that BP, Statoil and Shell conspired with other firms, including Morgan Stanley and Vitol, to manipulate Brent crude, a benchmark used to price more than half the world’s oil.

By Asjylyn Loder and Bradley Olson November 19, 2013

Some of the world’s largest oil traders including Vitol Group, Morgan Stanley and Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA) are asking a judge to stop the disclosure of millions of records gathered by the top U.S. commodity regulator during its nationwide investigation of the crude markets.

The haul includes e-mails, depositions, trading records and audio files obtained by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission since its probe of the oil market began in December 2007. The companies are appealing an Oct. 25 order by U.S. District Judge William H. Pauley that would allow the handover of the trove to lawyers leading a civil case alleging market manipulation by firms controlled by Norwegian billionaire John Fredriksen. read more

It’s often said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results. So what should we make of Royal Dutch Shell’s  decision to return to the Chukchi Sea? Is this pure folly, or is there method in Shell’s madness? A comedy of errors; Shell’s history in the Chukchi Sea reads like a rap sheet. Shell will have to make do without the albatross of its Kulluk rig, which the company has finally acknowledged is barely worth its value in scrap. That means another write-off in the fourth quarter of a few hundred million dollars, but, hey, who’s counting?

1 Way Shell Shouldn’t Emulate ExxonMobil

By Sara Murphy | November 19, 2013

It’s often said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results. So what should we make of Royal Dutch Shell‘s (NYSE: RDS-A  ) decision to return to the Chukchi Sea? Is this pure folly, or is there method in Shell’s madness?

A comedy of errors
Shell’s history in the Chukchi Sea reads like a rap sheet. Shell reached a settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency this September under which the company paid out $1.1 million for violations of the Clean Air Act. EPA cited “numerous violations” of Shell’s air permits. read more

The Transocean rig effectively replaces Shell’s Kulluk, a drillship that ran aground in January while being towed south after a troubled 2012 drilling season for the company off Alaska.

Mon Nov 18, 2013 6:07pm EST

Nov 18 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell Plc has a contract with Transocean Ltd for a drilling rig to start work off the coast of Alaska starting July of next year – in time for the state’s traditional Arctic offshore drilling season.

Confirmation on timing of the previously announced contract came in Transocean’s monthly fleet status report, released late on Monday.

Speculation about Shell’s intentions for Alaska next year has bubbled since an executive said at the end of October he expected to submit an Alaska exploration plan in a “few weeks,” with a focus on the Chukchi Sea. read more

A leased drill ship, the Polar Pioneer, would substitute for the Kulluk — the conical, Shell-owned ship damaged in the now-notorious New Year’s Eve grounding — as the backup drill rig that would be used in a cleanup in the event of a well blowout.

Yereth Rosen:November 18, 2013

Shell plans to drill five wells over several years at its Burger prospect in the Chukchi Sea, according to a revised exploration plan filed Nov. 6 and posted online by the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

Under the plan, Shell would use the leased Noble Discoverer drill ship to finish the well it started in 2012 and drilled to 1,505 feet. Five additional Burger wells also would be drilled.

“It is anticipated that this work will take place over a number of drilling seasons,” the 423-page modified plan says. read more