- The Australian
- 12:00AM August 2, 2016
BRIDGET CARTER: Mergers & Acquisitions Editor: Sydney
GRETCHEN FRIEMANN: Mergers & Acquisitions Editor: Sydney
It’s unlike the CFO of an oil major to be imprecise when it comes to accounting classifications of assets.
Unless maybe he doesn’t mind causing a bit of mischief for a joint venture partner with whom relationships have been less than rosy of late.
Shell finance director Simon Henry set the hares running last week during a second-quarter earnings call when he declared the company’s 13.3 per cent stake in Woodside Petroleum had been reclassified first as “held available for sale” and then “held as an asset for sale”.
The problem is, according to some local non-Shell accountants, this seems to cross over on two different accounting terms — “available for sale” and “held for sale”.
The difference being that “available for sale” is somewhere you house some equity investments you don’t have a lot of control over no matter what your time limits on a sale, while “held for sale” implies an intention to offload in the next year.
Shell’s local office wasn’t able to clarify yesterday, and who knows when they will be able to, given most of the bigwigs have headed off to enjoy the European summer now earnings are out of the way. And the Shell accounts are not specific.
But the explanation that the reclassification was due to losing board influence after recent sell-downs and the fact that falls in Woodside share prices hit Shell’s non-current assets, rather than current, indicates the shares are classified as “available for sale” and the sell-down is not imminent.
And with share prices down 36 per cent since Woodside shareholders scotched a board-approved buyback of Shell’s shares in July 2014, Shell will feel out of the money if it sells now.
Data Room is not saying this is a source of mischief worth putting short-term pressure on Woodside’s share price over, but Henry would have $US2.7 billion more (before tax) on his balance sheet had Woodside’s board and management better sold the buyback.
Luckily for Woodside chairman Michael Chaney (whose departure looks like happening earlier than any
Shell sell-down) and chief executive Peter Coleman, they were prevented from buying Shell’s shares and can thank their shareholders for a dodged bullet.
Almost immediately after, oil prices (and Woodside shares) tanked and the $US2.7bn that remained on the Woodside balance sheet instead of heading to Shell has come in very handy in a market that places a lot more value on balance-sheet strength.
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.
