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January, 2015:

Shell stokes up its fire sale

Screen Shot 2014-06-23 at 11.37.41Introduction by John Donovan

Bloomberg is reporting that Shell has agreed to sell its stake in the Bijupira and Salema fields in Brazil. This development is no doubt in response to the collapse in oil prices and is stoking up the fire sale instituted by CEO Ben van Beurden when Shell announced a profits warning a year ago.

Extract from Bloomberg article

Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA), the second-largest oil operator in Brazil, is selling a stake in one of its oil-producing projects in the country to HRT Participacoes em Petroleo SA (HRTP3), two people with knowledge of the matter said.

HRT, based in Rio de Janeiro, agreed to buy Shell’s 80 percent stake in the Bijupira and Salema fields, an offshore venture that started production in 2003, the people said, asking not to be identified because the deal hasn’t been made public. HRT will boost production to more than 30,000 barrels a day with the purchase, one of the people 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.

Oil Prices Start Week in Negative Territory

Screen Shot 2015-01-13 at 09.23.28From an article by Georgi Kantchev published by the Wall Street Journal 19 Jan 2015 unde the headline:

“Oil Prices Start Week in Negative Territory”

Extract

LONDON—Oil prices started the week in negative territory on expectations that a sustained recovery is still a long way off. …analysts said they see little evidence that the combination of oversupply and sluggish demand that has pummeled prices since last summer is abating. “Despite a nearly 60% fall in oil prices since mid-2014, oil market balances remain weak, with prospects of a recovery looking dim until the latter months of 2015…”

FULL ARTICLE

From an article by Ladane Nasseri published by Bloomberg on 19 Jan 2015 under the headline: 

“Iran Blames Oil-Price Plunge for Delay in Saudi Visit”

Extract

A meeting between the foreign ministers of OPEC’s Iran and Saudi Arabia was delayed in part due to discord over falling crude prices, said Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Iran’s deputy foreign minister for Arab and African affairs. 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 continued collapse in oil prices

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.

Proof Errant Shell employees can end up in jail 

Screen Shot 2015-01-16 at 12.36.53By John Donovan

Shell employees can potentially end up financially destitute or in jail for acts of negligence, for lying or falsifying records on behalf of Shell, or when giving misleading evidence on behalf of Shell in a court case.

The news story below – Oil Worker Faces Stiff Penalties After Airport Spill – comes after years of claims from Shell senior management about the top priority it gives to safety issues.

Shell appointed a safety Czar in July 2007. 

In 2008, it was discovered that even the life boats on a Shell North Sea Oil rig were unseaworthy. 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 dramatic consequences of plunging oil prices

Screen Shot 2015-01-16 at 09.03.51“Brent futures are set to fall to as low as $31 a barrel by the end of the first quarter from about $48 now.”; “People know these prices are unsustainable,” he said, and they will lead to large-scale layoffs and cuts in maintenance spending, which will eventually sharply reduce overall output. BP’s announcement of layoffs was just the start…; “Just a few months ago, analysts predicted the price would bottom out at $70 a barrel, and then $60. Now it’s at $46, and many have given up trying to guess when the bottom will come.”

From an article by Will Kennedy and Firat Kayakiran published on 16 January 2015 by BloombergBusinessweek under the headline:

“Big Oil Companies Get Serious With Cost Cuts on Worst Slump Since 1986”

Major oil companies are awaking from their slumber and facing up to the magnitude of the crash in crude prices.

From Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA) canceling a $6.5 billion project in Qatar to Schlumberger Ltd. firing about 9,000 people and Statoil ASA (STL) giving up exploration in Greenland, the oil industry this week concluded that the slump is no blip. 

And there’s certainly more unwinding to come. For most of this month, crude oil has traded below $50 a barrel, a level few predicted even two months ago when OPEC signaled it wouldn’t cut production to defend prices. If the market stays this depressed, global spending on exploration and production could fall more than 30 percent this year, the biggest drop since 1986, according to forecasts from Cowen & Co. 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 Doomed Project Scalebacks

Screen Shot 2015-01-12 at 08.45.23From an article by Royston Wild published 15 Jan 2015 by The Motley Fool under the headline:

“Why Royal Dutch Shell Plc And BP plc’s Project Scalebacks Are Doomed To Fail”

With the oil price collapse showing no signs of bottoming any time soon, the world’s fossil fuel giants are in a desperate struggle to ratchet up their cost-saving initiatives and cut their exposure to what is becoming an increasingly perilous market.

Just yesterday, Royal Dutch Shell (LSE: RDSB) announced that it was stopping work on a £4.3bn petrochemicals plant with Qatar Petroleum. Construction of the huge Al-Karaana complex started in 2012, but Shell has been forced to bin the operation due to “high capital costs rendering it commercially unfeasible, particularly in the current economic climate prevailing in the energy industry.” 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.

Detoxifying Shell’s online image: Possible or Impossible? 

Screen Shot 2015-01-01 at 15.17.55By John Donovan 

Royal Dutch Shell has appointed Possible as its global digital agency, starting with corporate brand work.

Seems a safe assumption that one important aspect will be an attempt to detoxify the reputation of Shell, which has recently agreed to pay huge settlements of litigation arising from environmental pollution in Nigeria and the USA. Shell is said to be suffering from buyers remorse on the latter settlement deal.

Shell settles Nigerian oil spills claim for $83.5 million

Shell Halts $90-Million Payout for Toxic Neighborhood after Judge Says Deal Can’t Be Secret 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.

Oil companies throwing in the towel

Screen Shot 2015-01-12 at 08.45.23“Other companies – including Maersk, Cairn Energy (Scotland) and Shell (the Netherlands) – have postponed their plans for two years while they consider their options.”

From an article by CW published by the Copenhagen Post on 14 Jan 2015 under the headline:

Oil companies throwing in the towel in Greenland

Greenland’s dream of becoming the next oil mecca is fading. Three major energy companies – Statoil (Norway), GDF Suez (France) and Dong Energy (Denmark) – have given up plans to excavate oil in the ocean west of the world’s largest island.

Other companies – including Maersk, Cairn Energy (Scotland) and Shell (the Netherlands) – have postponed their plans for two years while they consider their options. Investing in oil excavation in Greenland is too expensive and uncertain, the oil companies contend. 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.

BP sees $50 oil for three years

Screen Shot 2014-12-04 at 20.54.03BP can’t be immune to the upheaval. Today its job announcement is focused on the UK. But it won’t be long till it announces staff reductions in Houston, another of its important centres.

Robert Peston article published by BBC News 15 Jan 2015

BP sees $50 oil for three years

BP’s job announcement later today, including a few hundred job losses in Aberdeen, is being made because it does not expect the oil price to bounce any time soon.

The oil price has dropped around 60% since June, to $48 a barrel, and I understand that BP expects that it will stay in the range of $50 to $60 for two to three years.

Although no oil company has a crystal ball, this matters – especially since it has a big impact on its investment and staffing ambitions.

So plans that it had already initiated to reduce costs have taken on a new element, namely postponement of investments in new capacity that have not been started, and shelving of plans to extend the life of older fields where residual oil is more expensive to extract. 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.

Arctic Explorers Retreat From Hostile Waters With Oil Prices Low

Screen Shot 2014-08-06 at 09.25.26From an article by Mikael Holter published 14 Jan 2015 by Bloomberg under the headline:

“Arctic Explorers Retreat From Hostile Waters With Oil Prices Low”

When Statoil ASA (STL) acquired the last of three licenses off Greenland’s west coast in January 2012, oil at more than $110 a barrel made exploring the iceberg-ridden waters an attractive proposition.

Less than two years later, the price of oil had been cut by almost half and Norway’s Statoil, the world’s most active offshore Arctic explorer in 2014, relinquished its interest in all three licenses in December without drilling a single well…

“At $50, it just doesn’t make sense,” James Henderson, a senior research fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, said in a Jan. 12 phone interview. “Arctic exploration has almost certainly been significantly undermined for the rest of this decade.” 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.

Brace for $40-a-barrel oil

Screen Shot 2015-01-14 at 14.32.13FROM AN ARTICLE BY GRANT SMITH PUBLISHED BY BLOOMBERG.COM ON 14 JAN 2015 UNDER THE HEADLINE:

Oil at $40, and Below, Gaining Traction on Wall Street

Extracts

Brace for $40-a-barrel oil.

The U.S. benchmark crude price, down more than $60 since June to below $45 yesterday, is on the way to this next threshold, said Societe Generale SA and Bank of America Corp. And Goldman Sachs Group Inc. says that West Texas Intermediate needs to remain near $40 during the first half to deter investment in new supplies that would add to the glut.

“The markets are continuing to price in huge oversupply in the first half of 2015,” Mike Wittner, head of research at Societe Generale SA in New York, said by phone on Jan. 12. “We’re going to go below $40.” 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 puts the brakes on

Screen Shot 2015-01-14 at 13.56.44By John Donovan

In response to the collapse in the price of oil, Shell and Qatar Petroleum have abandoned a $6.4 billion joint venture to build a petrochemical complex in the Ras Laffan Industrial City. 

Extract from a Reuters Report:,

Prices quoted by companies to build the huge complex showed the project was “commercially unfeasible, particularly in the current economic climate prevailing in the energy industry”, the statement said. 

REUTERS REPORT

RELATED FINANCIAL TIMES ARTICLE 14 JAN 2015:

Shell scraps $6.5bn Qatar project due to oil price rout

Extract

The decision not to proceed — a significant move following the halving of oil prices since last summer — was taken “after a careful and thorough evaluation of commercial quotations” from engineering, procurement and construction bidders, Shell 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.

Internal documents reveal industry ‘pattern of behavior’ on toxic chemicals

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 21.26.38Decades after its release, a lawyer for Shell Oil Company flagged the 1948 report as being potentially damaging in lawsuits and gave out instructions to “avoid unnecessary disclosure of sensitive documents or information” and “disclose sensitive benzene documents only on court order.”

From an article by David Heath and Jim Morris published by The Center for Public Integrity on 4 December 2014 under the headline:

Internal documents reveal industry ‘pattern of behavior’ on toxic chemicals

Sixty-six years ago, a professor at the Harvard School of Public Health wrote a report linking leukemia to benzene, a common solvent and an ingredient in gasoline. “It is generally considered,” he wrote, “that the only absolutely safe concentration for benzene is zero.”

The report is remarkable not only because of its age and candor, but also because it was prepared for and published by the oil industry’s main lobby group, the American Petroleum Institute.

This document and others like it bedevil oil and chemical industry executives and their lawyers, who to this day maintain that benzene causes only rare types of cancer and only at high doses. 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, Total Lead Energy Shares Lower – $45 a barrel

Screen Shot 2015-01-02 at 23.58.26
From an article by Alan Soughley published by BloombergBusinessweek 13 Jan 2015 under the headline: 

“European Stocks Decline; Shell, Total Lead Energy Shares Lower”

Extracts

Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Total SA led energy-related companies lower…

A gauge of energy stocks slid 1 percent today, for the worst performance of the 19 industry groups on the Stoxx 600. Oil extended losses to trade below $45 a barrel amid speculation that U.S. crude stockpiles will increase, exacerbating a global supply glut that’s driven prices to the lowest in more than 5 1/2 years.

FULL ARTICLE

Screen Shot 2015-01-13 at 09.23.28From an article by Clifford Krauss published by The New York Times (NY edition) 13 Jan 2015 under the headline:

“Oil Prices Fall to Lowest Since 2009”

Extracts

HOUSTON — Oil prices took another sharp turn downward on Monday to levels not seen since the depths of the 2009 recession. Several international banks predicted even lower prices later this year because of an oversupplied global crude market. 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.

What Shell’s Settlement of Environmental Pollution in Ogoni Means

Screen Shot 2015-01-12 at 23.44.14An article by guest contributor Ben Ikari

The recent settlement by $hell Petroleum Development Company of $83.5 million to the Ogoni community of Bodo, as out-of-court compensation in the United Kingdom, for two oil spills caused by company’s negligence in 2008, is a sign of hope. It is a welcome development in the Ogoni struggle for environmental and economic justice.

Although the money may be small compared to what the company and its likes pay in European countries and United States of America for lost sources of livelihood and development, it opens the stage for accountability, better remediation measures and possible positive community relations. This settlement has a clean-up package. That is, $hell will clean up its usual mess of pollution. 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.

My campaign Against the Huge Nazi Ship: The Pieter Schelte

By John Donovan

Printed below is an article published today by The Jerusalem Post about my campaign to persuade Mr Edward Heerema to change the name of the latest edition to his Allseas fleet, The Pieter Schelte.

It has just arrived in Rotterdam for some final equipment installation and will be bound for the North Sea in four months to begin work decommissioning Shell oil rigs. Shell apparently has no problem with the Nazi name, which is perhaps unsurprising given its own past close association with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party.  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.

Oil prices renewed their declines on Monday, dropping below $49 a barrel

Screen Shot 2014-10-16 at 12.52.57

Article by Ron Bousso published 12 Jan 2015 by Reuters under the headline:

“Oil prices extend falls; Goldman Sachs slashes forecasts”

LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices renewed their declines on Monday, dropping below $49 a barrel as Goldman Sachs slashed its short-term forecasts and Gulf producers showed no signs of cutting production.

Both Brent and U.S. crude are around their lowest since April 2009 and have fallen for seven straight weeks on a growing supply glut.

The February Brent contract (LCOc1) was down $1.29 at $48.82 a barrel at 0417 ET. U.S. crude oil for February (CLc1) was down $1.12 at $47.24 per barrel.

FULL ARTICLE 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.

Tumbling oil prices

From a Bloomberg article by Joe Carroll and Tara Patel published 12 Jan 2015 by Business Report under the headline:Screen Shot 2015-01-12 at 08.45.23

“Analysis: Falling oil prices to trigger flood of write-downs”

Extracts

TUMBLING crude prices will trigger a flood of oilfield write-downs starting this month after industry returns slumped to a 16-year low, calling into question half a decade of exploration.

With crude prices down more than 50 percent from their 2014 peak, fields as far-flung as Kazakhstan and Australia are no longer worth pumping, says a team of Citigroup analysts led by Alastair Syme. Firms on the hook for risky, high-cost projects that do not make sense in a $50-a-barrel (R587) market include international titans such as Royal Dutch Shell and small wildcatters like Sanchez Energy. 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.

Carousel neighborhood of Carson: Home Sweet Home

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 21.26.38At some point, the three underground tanks and drainage fields that had been connected to the Shell oil refinery began to leak oil and chemicals – turning a once-appealing neighborhood into a place where hundreds of homes sit atop 161,700 cubic yards of toxic sludge. Ultra-hazardous chemicals were found in the soil, including methane and benzene, which have been linked to melanoma and lymphoma.

EXTRACTS FROM AN ARTICLE BY MATT REYNOLDS PUBLISHED BY COURTHOUSE NEWS SERVICE ON 9 JAN 2015 UNDE THE HEADLINE:

“Shell close to $90M Payout for Toxic SoCal Neighborhood”

LOS ANGELES (CN) – A state court judge looks set to approve a $90 million settlement with residents of a Carson neighborhood sitting on top of a sludge of petroleum waste, pending a final objection from the oil giant’s developer co-defendant in the case.

Shell also entered into an agreement with the California water quality control board to spend $140 million to clean up the 50-acre neighborhood. That’s in addition to the $40 million Shell has already spent remediating the property. 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.

Panic sets in: Shell Canada job cuts

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 21.26.38From Business News Network: 9 Jan 2015

BNN Exclusive: Shell Canada lays off oil sands workers 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.

Panic sets in: Shell books supertankers to store crude at sea

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 21.26.38Shell books supertankers to store crude at sea

iNVEZZ.com, Friday, January 09, Royal Dutch Shell Plc (LON:RDSA) has this week hired supertankers to store crude at sea in an attempt to stockpile oil supplies following the plunge in world prices, Reuters has reported. Shares of the Anglo-Dutch group have fallen so far in today’s trading session.

FULL ARTICLE

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 to Sell Malaysian Refinery?

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 21.26.38From a Reuters article published Friday 9 Jan 2015 under the headline:

“Malaysia’s Shell Refining explores options in face of weak margins” 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.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc a Basket Case Long After 2015?

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 11.59.38From an article by Royston Wild published Friday 9 Jan 2015 by The Motley Fool under the headline:

“Why Royal Dutch Shell Plc, BHP Billiton plc And Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc Will Remain Basket Cases Long After 2015” 

Royal Dutch Shell has seen its earnings forecasts painted with red ink; Shell is expected to see earnings drop a meaty 15% in 2015; …the effect of a depressed oil price is likely to put many producers out of business…; Shell could be forced to hive off even more of its assets…

Like the rest of the oil sector, Royal Dutch Shell (LSE: RDSB) has seen its earnings forecasts painted with red ink by City analysts in recent weeks.

Shell is expected to see earnings drop a meaty 15% in 2015, to 295.3 US cents per share. But while a 10% improvement is anticipated for next year, to 325.5 cents, a slumping oil price suggests otherwise. The Brent benchmark’s nosedive took in a fresh multi-year trough below $50 per barrel this week, the lowest since mid-2009, and a figure of $20 before the year is out is being touted with increasing confidence. 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.

Oil Price Crash Threatens Shell and BP’s Dividends

Screen Shot 2015-01-09 at 09.04.47

Screen Shot 2015-01-09 at 12.16.35

Should BP and Shell conserve cash or pay out dividends to please shareholders? Bidness Etc discusses the dilemma being faced by the oil giants amid plummeting crude oil price

By: MICHEAL KAUFMAN
Published: Jan 9, 2015 at 6:57 am EST

In recent months, questions have been raised if it is prudent for companies to pay out dividends or build up cash reserves. With crude oil falling below the $50 per barrel barrier, many energy firms have had to cut their capital expenditures (capex), halt expansion plans, get more debt, and sell off assets.

Sacrificing revenue growth and selling off valuable assets is not a sustainable way to balance cash flows, but should the companies continue to pay billions of dollars in dividends? Perhaps, it would be wiser to withhold dividend payments to protect the company from negative impacts of falling cash flows. 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.

BP To Cut Jobs And Capital Spending

Screen Shot 2015-01-09 at 09.04.47

Screen Shot 2015-01-09 at 09.05.00

Screen Shot 2015-01-09 at 09.05.40

Screen Shot 2014-12-04 at 20.54.03Bidness Etc discusses the capital spending reduction and job cuts planned by BP for this year and the reasons for doing so. Future prospects of the oil giant are also looked upon

By: MICHEAL KAUFMAN
Published: Jan 8, 2015 at 8:56 am EST

BP plc (ADR) (NYSE:BP) is looking to divest more assets in the US as effects of lower crude price continue to take their toll on the oil companies. Crude oil price since June has fallen over 50%. West Texas Intermediate during pre-market trading on Thursday gained 0.3% to $48.9, while Brent crude was trading at $51.2 per barrel. Currently crude oil price is hovering around its five-and-a-half year low.

In addition to falling oil price, the British oil major has been charged a maximum fine of $18 billion regarding the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Therefore, to improve its liquidity position BP is undertaking major divestments and has significantly reduced capital spending. BP has undertaken asset divestitures of $42 billion and further asset divestitures worth $10 billion are expected by the end of this 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.

Shell in court again, this time Canada

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 21.26.38From an article published by the observer.ca on 7 Jan 2015 under the headline:

“Shell to appear Feb 13 in Sarnia court”

Shell Canada has been charged by Ontario’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change following a Jan. 11, 2013 incident at its plant near Corunna.

Ministry spokesperson Kate Jordan said in an email that the charge is related to a leak of flare liquids at its Sarnia Manufacturing Centre.

The charge alleges Shell Canada did commit the offence of discharging, or causing, or permitting a discharge of a contaminant into the natural environment that caused or was likely to have caused an adverse effect, contrary to the Environmental Protection Act. 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.

Big Oil’s Dilemma: Save or Borrow?

Screen Shot 2015-01-07 at 23.11.04From an article by Justin Scheck published 7 Jan 2015 by Dow Jones Newswires under the headline:

“Oil Firms’ New Dilemma: Save, or Borrow More?

Extracts

For years, big oil companies have been spending more money than they bring in. With oil prices having more than halved since last June, that is becoming an ever trickier way to run their businesses.

Now, companies like Exxon Mobil Corp., Royal Dutch Shell PLC and BP PLC must decide whether to risk future earnings by cutting developments, risk upsetting investors by cutting dividends, or take on big debt in the hope that oil prices will soon recover.

Shell Chief Executive Ben van Beurden has said in recent months that last year’s capital spending would be lower than 2013’s. A spokesman said the company has enough borrowing capacity to maintain dividend and capital spending levels “for a reasonable period of time.”  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’s disastrous foray into Arctic waters

Screen Shot 2014-10-31 at 17.18.55From an article by Joel Connelly published 7 Jan 2015 by Seattlepi.com under the headline:

“Will Port of Seattle be repair center for Shell Oil’s Arctic vessels?

Extracts

The Port of Seattle’s Terminal 5 is being proposed as a repair and service center for vessels engaged in Shell Oil’s troubled, delayed program to drill for oil in Arctic waters of the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas off Alaska.

In the summer of 2012, the tug Lauren Foss towed the Shell exploration ship Noble Discoverer away from a beach in Dutch Harbor, Alaska, after its anchor slipped and the 512-foot vessel nearly ran aground.

The contractor operating the Noble Discoverer, Noble Drilling LLC, later pleaded guilty to eight felony counts for violating environmental and safety laws, and paid a $12.2 million fine. The violations were discovered during a U.S. Coast Guard safety inspection. 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.

Niger delta communities to sue Shell in London

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 21.26.38From an article by John Vidal published by The Guardian on Wed 7 Jan 2015 under the headline: 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.

Oil crashes below $50 – Big Oil loses $200 billion

Screen Shot 2015-01-07 at 22.48.35

Screen Shot 2014-02-18 at 18.34.00The meltdown in oil prices has wiped out more than $200 billion in market valuation among the 10 largest oil and natural gas companies in the S&P 500. To combat depressed prices, oil companies are hitting the brakes on spending and laying off workers. Investors are saying “enough.” They are dumping their energy stocks as the outlook for profits and dividends has diminished significantly.

From a BBC News article published 7 Jan 2015 under the headline:

Screen Shot 2015-01-07 at 23.11.04“Brent crude oil price dips below $50 a barrel”

The price of Brent crude oil has fallen below $50 a barrel for the first time since May 2009.

It fell more than a dollar to $49.92 a barrel in early trading on Wednesday before edging back above the $50 mark.

Slowing global growth and increased supply of oil and gas have pushed prices sharply lower in recent weeks.

The price of oil traded in the United States, known as West Texas Intermediate crude, has already fallen below $50.

Many observers expect the price of oil to fall further as North American shale producers continue to supply increasing quantities of oil and gas, and the oil-producing group Opec resists calls for cuts in production to support prices. 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 Halts $90-Million Payout for Toxic Neighborhood after Judge Says Deal Can’t Be Secret

 Article by Ken Broder from theAllGov.com website in California, published Wed 7 Jan 2015

A lawyer suing on behalf of residents in the contaminated neighborhood of Carson said his clients would never settle with the much reviled Shell Oil over the toxic brew it buried a few feet beneath their soon-to-be-built houses.

Then they did, for $90 million in late November.

In reviewing the settlement before deciding whether to accept it, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge William Highberger indicated he might not keep terms of the agreement secret, as agreed to by the parties.

That didn’t sit well with Shell Oil and last month the company told the judge the settlement is unsettled while they consider their options. A third party to the legal battles swirling around the environmental disaster, the developers who built on the toxic mess, said they had not seen the settlement and feared important information about the site would be kept secret. read more

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Shell settles Nigerian oil spills claim for $83.5 million

Screen Shot 2015-01-07 at 09.02.16An AFP article published 7 Jan 2015 by Mail Online under the headline:

“Shell strikes Nigerian oil spills compensation deal”

Royal Dutch Shell has agreed a multi-million-dollar settlement to compensate 15,600 Nigerian fishermen over two serious oil spills in 2008 after a three-year legal battle, both parties announced Wednesday.

The Anglo-Dutch energy giant’s Nigerian arm has agreed to pay £55 million ($83.5 million, 70 million euros) to people in Bodo, a town in southern Nigeria, Shell and the fishermens’ London-based lawyers Leigh Day said.

The Shell Petroleum Company of Nigeria (SPDC) will pay around £35 million to the individual claimants, and a further £20 million to the community. read more

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High Noon on oil prices: OPEC vs U.S. Shale

From an article by Catherine Ngai published on 6 Jan 2015 by Reuters under the headline: Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 21.31.03

“High Noon on the Gulf Coast: Canada, Saudi oil set for showdown”

NEW YORK (Reuters) – As a test of wills between OPEC nations and U.S. shale drillers fuels a global oil market slump, a brewing battle between Canadian and Saudi Arabia heavy crudes for America’s Gulf Coast refinery market threatens to drive prices even lower.

While the stand-off between the oil cartel and U.S. producers of light, sweet shale oil has captured the limelight in recent months, the clash over heavier grades – playing out in the shadowy, opaque physical market – may put even more pressure on global prices that have halved since mid-2014. read more

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Investors Freak: Oil on its way down to $20 A Barrel?

Screen Shot 2015-01-02 at 23.58.26From an article by Christopher Helman published by Forbes.com on 6 Jan 2015 under the headline:

“Investors Freak As Saudi Inaction Could Sink Oil To $20 A Barrel. Time To Buy?

OPEC is not going to come to the rescue. It is up to American producers to cut oil supplies.

The world freaked out over oil Monday. U.S. crude fell as low as $49.77 a barrel, down about 6%. Brent crude is at $53. This is the lowest price since early 2009, when oil bottomed at $35 less than nine months after hitting a record high of $147.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 331 points Monday. Many reports have blamed oil for the stock market weakness, but that doesn’t really make much sense. All else equal, low oil prices are a boon to economic growth. And besides, considering how high the Dow has risen, 330 points just ain’t what it used to be — merely a 1.8% move. Back in 2008 the Dow suffered 11 days with losses of 4% or more. read more

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Why A BP Shell Merger Is Not A Sensible Option

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Why A BP plc (BP) Royal Dutch Shell Merger Is Not A Sensible Option

Bidness Etc discusses how lower oil prices have impacted BP’s stock price, and why the merger with Royal Dutch Shell is not on the cards

By: MICHEAL KAUFMAN
Published: Jan 6, 2015 at 9:46 am EST

Crude oil prices have declined sharply this year. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) has already fallen below $50 per barrel for the first time in nearly five-and-half years, with Brent crude hovering around the same level. Several US oil companies are fighting for their survival, especially after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) decided to maintain its current level of production. WTI and Brent crude were trading at $49.56 and $52.57 per barrel, respectively, during pre-market trading today. read more

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Market Collapse: 5 percent of Shell’s capital invested in money-losing projects?

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 11.59.38From an article by Joe Carroll and Tara Patel published 6 Jan 2015 by BloombergBusinessweek under the headline:

“Oilfield Writedowns Loom as Market Collapse Guts Drilling Values” 

Shell, Europe’s largest energy producer, may have as much as 5 percent of its capital tied up in money-losing projects.

Extracts

Tumbling crude prices will trigger a flood of oilfield writedowns starting this month after industry returns slumped to a 16-year low, calling into question half a decade of exploration.

With crude prices down more than 50 percent from their 2014 peak, fields as far-flung as Kazakhstan and Australia are no longer worth pumping, said a team of Citigroup Inc. (C:US) analysts led by Alastair Syme. Companies on the hook for risky, high-cost projects that don’t make sense in a $50-a-barrel market include international titans such as Royal Dutch Shell Plc and small wildcatters like Sanchez Energy Corp. read more

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BP and Shell Slump

From an article by Alan Oscroft published by The Motley Fool on 6 Jan 2015 under the headline:

“BP plc, Royal Dutch Shell Plc And Tallow Oil plc Slump Further As Oil Hits New Record Lows”

Extracts

The price of Brent Crude slumped below $55 a barrel yesterday for the first time in more than five years, and there are fears now that it could even dip below $50.

BP is hurting

BP dropped 22.3p on the day, for a 5.4% fall to 388p. And with crashing oil prices added to the company’s still-unfinished Gulf of Mexico business, the shares are now down 26% from their July 52-week high of 527p.

Dividends could be cut if oil drops much lower, but cover for 2016’s predicted payout currently stands at 1.66 times — it could be better, but that’s not too bad. 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 Arctic debacle

Screen Shot 2014-09-06 at 21.06.55Article by Jeremy Cresswell published by EnergyVoice.com on 6 Jan 2015 under the headline:

“Noble Drilling has book thrown at it by Alaskan authorities”

The paper stated: “So obviously, the safeguards in place to date have about as much teeth as a guppy. How do we know the repairs done truly take care of the problems with Noble Discoverer? Because Noble Drilling and Shell say so?”

PREDICAMENT: Drilling rig Kulluk aground in Alaska

Written by Jeremy Cresswell – 06/01/2015 6:00 am

Noble Drilling has been charged with environmental and maritime crimes for operating the drill ship Noble Discoverer and the drilling unit Kulluk in violation of federal law in Alaska in 2012.

Under the terms of a plea agreement filed in the Alaskan federal court early last month, Noble Drilling (US) is pleading guilty to eight felony offences, will pay $12.2million in fines and community service payments, implement a comprehensive “environmental compliance plan”, and will be placed on probation for four years. read more

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Shell still buying Iranian crude

Screen Shot 2015-01-06 at 10.42.47Reuters: Tuesday, Jan 06, 2015

TOKYO – Two of Japan’s biggest buyers of Iranian crude, JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp and Showa Shell Sekiyu KK, are set to keep their purchases from Tehran largely steady in 2015, their top officials said on Tuesday.

Japanese refiners have been making decisions about how much Iranian crude to buy after consulting with the government on how much they are allowed under Western sanctions on Iran.

Iran and Western world powers failed in November to meet a self-imposed deadline to resolve the standoff over Tehran’s nuclear ambitions, extending talks for seven more months and allowing the Islamic republic to keep exports at about 1 million bpd, down by more than half from 2012 levels. read more

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Oil Price Crash Continues Into 2015

Screen Shot 2015-01-02 at 23.58.26From an article by CLIFFORD KRAUSS and PETER EAVISJAN published in the NY print edition of The New York Times on 6 Jan 2015 under the headline:

“Oil’s Fall Continues Into 2015, and Stock Markets Shudder”

HOUSTON — Oil prices tumbled below $50 a barrel on Monday, spooking global financial markets and signaling that the remarkable 50 percent price drop since June was continuing this year and even quickening.

The new drop in American and global benchmarks of more than 5 percent was accompanied by reports of increased Middle Eastern oil exports, continuing increases in American production and renewed worries about the declining economic fortunes of Europe.

The plunge once again sent fear through global markets. read more

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Could Royal Dutch Shell buy BP?

Money Talks: Could Royal Dutch Shell Buy BP?

Screen Shot 2014-10-28 at 12.29.57Royal Dutch Shell’s rumoured takeover bid for BP is not as outlandish as first appears, according to Edmund Shing, global equity portfolio manager at BCS Asset Management.

Uploaded on YOUTUBE 9 DEC 2014

Since July, the collapse in world oil prices has been the talk of global financial markets. Brent crude oil, the global benchmark, has fallen from $115 per barrel to under $69 today, a price not seen since 2009.

This has been painful for investors holding oil & Gas stocks such as Royal Dutch Shell (RDS) or BP, with Royal Dutch Shell shareholders nursing losses of 10% since June, and BP shareholders an even more painful 15% loss since June.

There have been a number of consequences of this sharp oil price fall, one of which has been an increase in merger & acquisition activity in the global Oil & Gas sector. For instance in Oil Services, Halliburton is in the process of taking over US rival Baker Hughes for $35bn. read more

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BP hit by fall out from sanctions against Russia and oil price crash

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How BP Got Impacted From Exposure In Rosneft Oil Co (RNFTF) During Q4

Bidness Etc looks at how the western sanctions against Russia and the lower crude price have impacted BP during the fourth quarter due to its exposure in Rosneft Oil

By: MICHEAL KAUFMAN
Published: Jan 5, 2015 at 9:01 am EST

BP plc (ADR) (NYSE:BP) acquired a 20% stake in the Russian oil giant Rosneft Oil Co (OTCMKTS:RNFTF) in 2013. It was considered as one of the most important investments for BP as it was expected to deliver long-term value for the company. Russia is considered as the world’s largest oil producer; hence, BP was looking to exploit its investment in Rosneft to spread its scope in Russia.

However, things did not go as BP had planned. Following the annexation of Crimea, an autonomous region in Ukraine, the west imposed sanctions on Russia. The western sanctions made it impossible for the western companies to collaborate with Russian companies in shale, deepwater exploration, and to provide long-term financing. read more

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Shell and BP dividends at risk from oil price crash

Screen Shot 2015-01-05 at 16.43.46Extracts from CNBC Article by Katy Barnato published Mon 5 Jan 2015 under the headline: “BP, Shell dividends at risk from oil slump”

Screen Shot 2014-10-28 at 11.51.59“The risk is that given that these companies in the oil and gas sector account for 15 percent of the total payout, if the oil price remains low for a sustained period, this could become a risk…”

“At current levels the dividends (of BP and Shell) are not covered by free cash flow, meaning payouts need to be funded from debt…” read more

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M&A implications arising from oil price collapse

Screen Shot 2015-01-02 at 23.58.26Extracts from a Reuters article published Mon Jan 5, 2015

“The uncertainty caused by the severe decline in oil prices during the final two months of 2014 nearly brought deal activity to a standstill,” said Christopher Sheehan, director of energy M&A research at IHS. “Buyers and sellers are having difficulty reaching a consensus because of the oil price tumble, which is causing significant uncertainty for the industry. However, transformative acquisition opportunities typically arise at the bottom of the crude price cycle… “Our IHS analysis of upstream companies indicates debt-laden oil and gas companies that are not well-hedged could increasingly become takeover targets in 2015,” Sheehan said. read more

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Shell must put BP out of its misery

Screen Shot 2014-10-28 at 11.51.59Article by Jeremy Warner published on 4 Jan 2015 in The Sunday Telegraph

Valued at nearly £140bn, Shell is today worth almost twice as much as BP. Shell must put BP out of its misery before anyone else pounces. Here’s an idea that has investment bankers drooling in anticipation, but needs to be killed off here and now before it becomes self fulfilling… I can’t speak for Shell, but I can report that there is absolutely no appetite for it within BP, which is as bemused as me by the rumours.

Here’s an idea that has investment bankers drooling in anticipation, but needs to be killed off here and now before it becomes self fulfilling – that the time may finally be ripe for Britain’s two oil majors, Royal Dutch Shell and BP, to bury the hatchet and merge, or rather, for the much stronger Shell to takeover the weakened BP.

I can’t speak for Shell, but I can report that there is absolutely no appetite for it within BP, which is as bemused as me by the rumours.

The concept is, of course, scarcely new. We know that exploratory talks have been held on several occasions in the past. Lord Browne, the former BP chief executive, no less, has admitted to them. read more

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Outlook uncertain for Shell’s return to the Chukchi

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By Yereth Rosen: 3 Jan 2015

Six years after dropping more than $2 billion on leases in the remote Chukchi Sea off northwestern Alaska, Shell has yet to drill into any oil in that icy frontier.

Plans for an audacious offshore Arctic exploration program have been stymied by litigation and adverse court rulings and a string of accidents, mishaps, mistakes and some legal violations.

But the company is seeking to make up for lost time in 2015. After scrapping plans to drill in 2014 — a decision made necessary by a federal appeals court ruling in January that found regulators had failed to properly evaluate environmental impacts of the 2008 leasing — Shell has a new and much more aggressive exploration plan it hopes to make a reality this 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.

BP probes traders on rigging of £3 trillion-a-day market

Screen Shot 2014-12-04 at 20.54.03Extracts from an energyvoice.com article dated 31 Dec 2014

News service Bloomberg said it had seen copies of messages sent to the oil giant’s staff from firms whose senior forex traders belonged to a chatroom known as “The Cartel”.

Oil giant BP faces being drawn into the foreign exchange (forex) rigging scandal after it emerged that it has been investigating whether its traders were linked to the manipulation of the £3 trillion-a-day market.

The UK-based group said it had carried out a review of its activities after global regulatory probes which resulted in six banks last month being fined £2.6 billion for rigging the market.

Details emerged after reports that members of a BP trading unit were told of planned currency trades hours before they happened. read more

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Big Oil will get even bigger

Screen Shot 2014-02-18 at 18.34.00FROM AN ARTICLE BY FIONA MAHARG-BRAVO PUBLISHED IN THE NEW YORK TIMES FRIDAY 2 JAN 2015

It’s not clear that Shell, the wallflower in the 1990s, will make a move. Exxon and other majors in the United States might be tempted. Either way, chances are Big Oil will get even bigger… 

There was $383 billion in mergers and acquisitions in the oil and gas sector last year, as of Dec. 11. Yet Europe has largely missed out: About three-quarters of the targets have been in North America, according to Thomson Reuters data. Shale has played a big role. In 2015, oil and gas bankers in Europe will get a bigger slice of the action.

The last big fall in oil prices, at the end of 2008, was too short to push a big merger and acquisition wave.

BP’s former chairman, John Browne, wrote in his memoir that a merger with Shell, pondered while he was at the helm, might have delivered $9 billion in annual synergies. read more

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Oil prices down by almost 50%

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From an article published by Bloomberg News Friday 2 Jan 2015

Oil dropped to the lowest in more than five and a half years amid growing supply from Russia and Iraq and signs of manufacturing weakness in Europe and China.

Oil output in Russia and Iraq surged to the highest levels in decades in December, according to data from both countries’ governments.

Prices slumped 46 percent in New York in 2014, the steepest drop in six years and second-worst since trading began in 1983…

The European oil fell 48 percent last year, the second-biggest annual loss on record behind a 51 percent tumble in the 2008 financial crisis. read more

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Oil and Art Do Not Mix

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On a recent cold night in Trafalgar Square, a group of 30 or so people rehearsed a new piece of musical theater in front of Britain’s National Gallery of Art. But if the venue was highbrow, the production — including sinister characters and lyrics such as “A gallery of art-wash … to benefit the oil boss” — definitely was not.

It was being staged by the environmental group Art Not Oil, and the target of their satire was a Rembrandt exhibition, sponsored by the oil and gas company Shell. 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.