Friday 13 May 2016
Oil companies Shell and Exxon held secret talks with the economic affairs ministry in 2005 to set levels of production in the Groningen gas field up to and beyond 2020, according to documents obtained by NOS.
The documents show that the two companies exerted pressure on the ministry not to scale back gas extraction despite increasing concern over the increased frequency of earthquakes in the region.
The Dutch parliament was informed of the talks, which took place in 2005, but only knew of an agreement to set production levels for the next 10 years. The documents obtained under freedom of information legislation show that the deal also covered the years up to 2020, when the gas field is expected to go into decline, and afterwards.
In 2010 a civil servant wrote in a memo that parliament had ‘not been informed about long-term production’ and that the agreement between the oil companies and the ministry ‘limits the policy capacity of the minister’ to set production levels.
In December last year the government reduced the amount of gas to be extracted in Groningen this year to 27 billion cubic metres, following a Council of State ruling. In 2105 33 billion cubic metres was extracted.
Limit
The 2005 deal allowed a maximum production level of 425 billion cubic metres over the 10 years from 2006 to 2015, higher than the government’s preferred limit of 375 billion cubic metres.
Tens of thousands of homes in Groningen province have had to be shored up because of damage caused by earthquakes that have been linked to gas extraction, and some houses are unsellable. House prices have fallen by as much as 12% in areas worst hit by earth tremors.
NOS requested the documents as part of an investigation into gas production in 2013, when it reached its highest level for 30 years despite a warning by the regulator (Staatstoezicht op de Mijnen) that extraction needed to be scaled back urgently.
Read more at DutchNews.nl: Shell and Exxon secured ‘secret deal’ on Groningen gas production http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2016/05/shell-and-exxon-secured-secret-deal-on-groningen-gas-production/
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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.
