By SIMON NEVILLE, FINANCIAL MAIL ON SUNDAY

PUBLISHED: 21:52, 30 March 2019 | UPDATED: 21:52, 30 March 2019

Royal Dutch Shell is leading the charge back to the Gulf of Mexico nine years after the region was hit by BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

The Anglo-Dutch business splashed out $84.8 million (£64.7 million) on 87 drilling sites at an auction this month, having made just three bids at the previous auction in August last year.

Shell bosses have placed significant focus on the area in the past six months. At its results in January, the firm revealed production in the area had increased 50 per cent in two years to a peak of 40,000 barrels of oil a day. read more

28 March 2019

Few people would associate Royal Dutch Shell – oil and gas mega-company and the sixth largest enterprise in the world – with taking a lead in tackling climate change.

However, Shell is making a serious attempt to show it is walking the green walk with commitment and enthusiasm. This week it revealed its utility arm First Utility, acquired a year ago, has rebranded as Shell Energy and switched all of its 700,000 UK residential customers to power generated by renewables. read more

Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A +0.3%) could ramp up acquisitions of electricity producers to achieve its target of becoming the world’s biggest power company by the 2030s, Bernstein analysts say.

Shell must produce 214 terawatt hours of clean power every year by 2035 to become the biggest low-carbon electricity provider, which Bernstein says could be achieved through organic growth, ultimately managing 61 GW of power capacity, but the company probably will want to move faster and expand acquisitions of electricity producers. read more

By Kelly Gilblom: 29 March 2019, 11:13 GMT

*Company likely to expand acquisitions of electricity producers

*Shell must manage 61 gigawatts of clean power in 2030s

Royal Dutch Shell Plc could ramp up acquisitions of electricity producers to achieve its target of becoming the world’s biggest power company by the 2030s, according to analysis by Sanford C Bernstein Ltd.

To become the biggest low-carbon electricity provider, the company must produce 214 terawatt-hours of clean power every year by 2035, the analysis shows. That’s 11 percent more than Egypt, a country of nearly 100 million people, generated last year, according to data from BP Plc. read more

29 March 2019

AMSTERDAM/LONDON (Reuters) – Workers at Royal Dutch Shell’s Pernis oil refinery, Europe’s largest, and the Moerdijk chemical plant in the Netherlands will go on strike and reduce output from April 8 in a bid for higher wages, Dutch labour union CNV said on Friday.

Production at the 400,000 barrel per day refinery and the chemical plant will be reduced and kept lower until an agreement is reached, CNV spokesman Piet Verburg said.

The exact reduction in output is not yet clear. read more

A sign warns people to stay off land contaminated by oil pollution

By Bukola Adebayo, CNN: Updated 0018 GMT (0818 HKT) March 27, 2019

Lagos, Nigeria (CNN)A major new inquiry into oil companies operating in the Niger Delta has been launched by the Archbishop of York, John Sentamu. The probe will investigate “environmental and human damage” in Nigeria’s vast oil fields. read more

Ed Crooks in New York and Anjli Raval in London: 25 March 2019

On Sunday Royal Dutch Shell, one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies, announced that its First Utility retail power business would be rebranded as Shell Energy, with 700,000 households switched to renewable power. Customers will be offered not only cleaner electricity but discounts on fast-charging for their electric vehicles as well as broadband and smart-home technologies. Shell has floated the idea that by the 2030s it could be the largest power company in the world. FULL FT ARTICLE read more

Shell Energy will offer discounts on fuel at Shell petrol stations for its household gas and electricity customer: sPINPEP

Oil giant looking at acquisitions to expand in energy supply market

Royal Dutch Shell has said it will consider “all opportunities” to expand in the UK household gas and electricity supply market, declining to rule out acquiring one of the Big Six suppliers.

The Anglo-Dutch oil giant today rebrands First Utility, the supplier it bought in 2017, as Shell Energy and will start offering discounts on fuel at Shell petrol stations for its household gas and electricity customers as the first step in an ambitious plan to grab market share. read more

• Author: Andrew Toh    Wanda Wang    Eric Yep
• Editor: Wendy Wells
• 25 March 2019

Shell has loaded the first condensate cargo from Australia’s Prelude FLNG project, the company said Monday.

“We can confirm that the first shipment of condensate has sailed from the Shell-operated Prelude FLNG facility. This is another step towards steady state operations,” a Shell spokesperson said in an emailed response.

The Shell-controlled Aframax tanker, Advantage Atom, departed from Prelude FLNG on March 20, S&P Global Platts vessel tracking software cFlow showed. read more

MARCH 25, 2019

MELBOURNE, March 25 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell on Monday said it had shipped the first condensate cargo from its Prelude floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) project off northwestern Australia over the weekend.

“We can confirm that the first shipment of condensate has sailed from the Shell-operated Prelude FLNG facility. This is another step towards steady state operations,” a Shell spokeswoman said in emailed comments.

Shell had hoped to start generating cash flow from Prelude in 2018, but has yet to start shipping LNG from the project, which was to have been the world’s first floating LNG facility but was beaten by Malaysia’s Petronas. read more

By Ron Bousso, Susanna Twidale: March 24, 2019

LONDON (Reuters) – Just over a year after buying First Utility, Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) has rebranded the British household energy supplier and is switching all its customers to renewable electricity as the oil and gas giant seeks to expand its low-carbon business.

The move by the Anglo-Dutch company poses a challenge for Britain’s long-standing retail power suppliers whose profit margins have come under growing pressure due to intense competition and the regulator’s price cap. read more

Jillian Ambrose: 24 MARCH 2019 • 6:57PM

Royal Dutch Shell will begin supplying renewable electricity to more than 700,000 homes in the UK this week as it powers up plans to take become the world’s biggest electricity company.

Under the brand Shell Energy, it will become one of the country’s biggest green power suppliers overnight when it replaces First Utility, a year after acquiring the “big six” challenger brand.

Customers will automatically switch to green energy at no extra cost.

“On Monday morning more than 700,000 homes will wake up, turn on the lights, and switch on the kettle, using renewable electricity,” said Colin Crooks, the chief executive of Shell Energy Retail. read more

22 March 2019

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Workers at Royal Dutch Shell’s Pernis refinery in the Netherlands will go on strike if Shell does not meet their demands for a pay raise before Thursday night, Dutch labor union FNV said on Friday.

Workers at the 400,000 barrel per day refinery will determine the shape and timing of possible actions at the beginning of next week, FNV spokesman Egbert Vellenberg said.

Reporting by Bart Meijer; Editing by Kirsten Donovan

SOURCE

Exxon Mobil Corp., Royal Dutch Shell, Chevron, Total and BP together have spent more than $1 billion on public relations since the Paris Agreement.

• By Alexander C. Kaufman
• Chris D’Angelo, HuffPost US
• 22 March 2019

The world’s five largest publicly traded oil companies are increasing their investments in oil and gas, putting a combined $110 billion in new fossil-fuel production.

Meanwhile, those firms are projected to spend just $3.6 billion on low-carbon investments, such as biofuels and renewables, according to a new analysis that Influence Map, a British nonprofit that analyzes corporate influence on climate policy, derived from industry data and numbers buried in company disclosures.

The reckless disparity comes just months after the United Nations warned that the world must rapidly phase out fossil fuel use over the next decade or face catastrophic global warming of at least 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit. read more

Written by David McPhee – 21/03/2019 3:43 pm

A new UK Government-backed carbon capture advisory group will include representatives from BP and Shell.

Announced by the UK Government today, the group has been formed in an effort to open the first Carbon Capture, Usage and Storage (CCUS) facility in the UK by the mid-2020s.

Energy minister Claire Perry said the group would help ensure the takes “full advantage” in the emerging CCS sector.

The UK Government has backed the group with a £1 million support package.

Energy and infrastructure firms such as BP, Shell, Tata Steel, National Grid, Cadent and Drax are all involved. read more

Royal Dutch Shell (

The sale brought in the most revenue from such an event since the oil price downturn, with $244M in high offers received, according to the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

Anadarko Petroleum (APC -0.7%) and Hess (NYSE:HES) were the next highest bidders by dollar amount of high bids, totaling $24M and $18M respectively.

Equinor (NYSE:EQNR) placed the apparent high bid of the sale, offering $24.4M for Mississippi Canyon Block 801, and teaming up with Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) to win Keathley Canyon Block 964 with a $7M bid. read more

Angela Macdonald-Smith Energy reporter: Mar 20, 2019

The head of Europe’s biggest battery producer says the company’s takeover by oil giant Shell will give it the “bold” presence needed to thrive when the sector takes off in 18 to 24 months, when faster growth rates and tougher competition will prove a competitive test.

“We are in the very beginning of the storage market worldwide,” Sonnen chief executive Christoph Ostermann said during a visit to Australia this week. “We expect to reach an inflection point very, very soon and we have to prepare for that, secure financing for that and enhance our global footprint.” read more

• AuthorLucie Roux
• EditorJonathan Dart
• CommodityNatural Gas

Moscow — Russian LNG is well positioned to compete with North American projects to reach new markets in Asia and the Atlantic Basin despite the challenges, a Shell executive said Wednesday at the LNG Congress in Moscow.

He pointed to the Far East, with the planned capacity expansion at the Sakhalin plant, the Arctic with Yamal LNG and Arctic LNG 2 projects led by Russian Novatek, and the Baltic coast, with the Baltic LNG project.

But Russia is facing a challenge from North America as capital expenditure is generally lower over there. “Projects are built in a mature market,” he said. North American projects also benefit from special partnerships, supported by a low-tax regime. read more

Shell CEO Ben van Beurden subservient bow to Putin: Good Friday 18 April 2014

Source:sputniknews.com Published: 2019/3/19 18:16:45

Russia could become the largest natural gas producer in the world, Ben van Beurden, the CEO of Shell, wrote in an article for RIA Novosti.

“The world needs more natural gas to meet rising energy demand, to complement renewables and to replace coal in power generation. And the opportunity for Russia is huge. It is already the world’s largest exporter of natural gas and it enjoys the world’s largest commercial gas reserves. It is the second largest producer of natural gas. It could be the largest,” van Beurden said. read more

March 18, 2019, 10:36:00 AM EDT By Zacks Equity Research, Zacks.com

Royal Dutch Shell plc RDS.A and its partners in the major LNG Canada project intend to decide within 2025 whether to boost its capacity via doubling it, per Reuters. Shell is building the LNG export terminal on the west coast of the country. The facility is located in Kitimat, British Columbia.

The Canadian energy sector, which used to be a booming market, has not witnessed any major milestones over the past few years. Industry downturn, coupled with infrastructure deficiencies and U.S. shale revolution had hit the country hard. With the cancellation of major projects like Northern Gateway, Pacific NorthWest and Energy East, along with uncertainties associated with the existing ones, things had been quite dispiriting for investors in the Canadian oil energy space. The $31-billion LNG Canada project, thus, brought a ray of hope to the country’s energy industry’s plight. read more

Ben Van Beurden’s total pay package soared by 126% last year: Last year, over a quarter of Shell’s investors voted against Mr van Beurden’s pay at the energy giant’s annual meeting

By JANE DENTON FOR THISISMONEY:PUBLISHED:16:01, 14 March 2019 | UPDATED:16:04, 14 March 2019

The boss of oil and gas giant Royal Dutch Shell received a 126 per cent pay rise last year.

Chief executive Ben Van Beurden pocketed over £17million, including a long-term incentive plan linked sum of £12.8million, up from £7.6million, and a £2.5million bonus.

In its latest results, the group said: ‘As a consequence of the LTIP vesting in particular, the single figure of remuneration for the CEO is significantly higher this year than in previous years.’ read more

Angela Macdonald-Smith: March 18, 2019

Oil major Shell has set out ambitions to build a major electricity generating and retailing business in Australia within the next decade as part of its global shift towards lower-carbon energy, in comments that look set to revive speculation that a significant acquisition may be on the cards.

Maarten Wetselaar, the group’s global head of gas and new energies, said it would be “an enormously lost opportunity” if Shell didn’t get good at supplying low-carbon electricity to consumers and make the most of its famous brand. read more

Enerkem already have a successful waste-to-chemicals plant operating in Edmonton, Canada: Photo: Curtis Trent/Enerkem

Article by Amanda Jasi

SHELL has partnered with world-leading companies to build Europe’s first advanced waste-to-chemicals (W2C) facility in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The project represents an important step towards a more sustainable chemical industry and a circular economy.

The W2C project will be the first of its kind in Europe to make valuable chemicals and biofuels from non-recyclable waste materials. The facility, which will use cleantech company Enerkem’s proprietary technology, will be built within the Botlek area of the Port of Rotterdam. read more

By Tsvetana Paraskova – Mar 15, 2019, 9:00 PM CDT

Royal Dutch Shell has set its first-ever short-term goals to cut the carbon footprint of its operations and product sales as the oil and gas industry is under intense investor and shareholder pressure to address to climate change.

In its annual report published on Thursday, Shell said that in early 2019, it had decided to set a “Net Carbon Footprint target” for 2021 to lower its carbon footprint by 2-3 percent compared to the 2016 Net Carbon Footprint of 79 grams of CO2 equivalent per megajoule. read more

“Contract workers at Shell Nigeria are living in poverty, with no job security and poor healthcare that is costing workers’ lives. Contract workers face dismissal if they join a union or ask for a pay rise. They lack safety equipment and risk death in the field.”

Published by John Williams, Digital Assistant Editor
LNG Industry, Friday, 15 March 2019 11:04

Royal Dutch Shell violations against contract workers in Nigeria came under scrutiny at the 40th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland.

Royal Dutch Shell violations against contract workers in Nigeria came under scrutiny today at the 40th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland.

In a joint statement to the General Assembly of the Human Rights Council, IndustriALL Global Union and Swiss organisation, Europe-Third World Center (CETIM), said: read more

LNG Canada expansion to be decided by 2025: CEO

Ron Bousso: MARCH 14, 2019

HOUSTON (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell and its partners building a massive liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal in Western Canada will decide by 2025 whether to double its capacity, the head of the project said.

The $31 billion LNG Canada project last October became the first major project in five years to be approved, with first exports of the super-chilled fuel planned for 2025.

The second phase of the project will include two new processing lines known as trains that will double the plant’s capacity to 28 million tonnes of LNG per year. read more

Russia can become the world’s top natural gas producer – Shell CEO

Published time: 15 March 2019

The top executive says that rapidly increasing demand for natural gas has occurred due to the worldwide trend aimed at forcing out coal from power generation and the widening opportunity of available renewable energy sources.

“Russia’s chances in the field are huge,” van Beurden wrote in an article for RIA Novosti, stressing that the country is the world’s largest exporter of natural gas.

“It is the second largest producer of natural gas. It could be the largest,” he said. read more

$165K Settlement Reached With Shell Oil Over Refinery Violations in 2015, 2016

By Bay City News: Published Mar 14, 2019

The Shell Oil Company has agreed to pay $165,000 as part of an agreement with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District regarding air quality violations at their refinery in Martinez in 2015 and 2016, according to air district officials.

The settlement, which the district announced today, addresses 16 violations over two years including sulphur dioxide and hydrogen sulfide emissions, a shelter-in-place order, a cargo vessel tank that was overdue for emissions inspections and broken seals on a liquid storage tank. read more

Shell sets its first carbon reduction targets on output, consumption

Rivals BP and Total have already set short-term targets on reducing carbon dioxide emissions, but those planned cuts are limited to their own operations and exclude Scope 3 emissions.

“Early 2019, it was decided to set a Net Carbon Footprint target for 2021 of 2-3 percent lower than our 2016 Net Carbon Footprint of 79 grams of CO2 equivalent per megajoule,” Shell said in its 2018 annual report, which was released on Thursday.

The targets will be linked to the remuneration of around 150 executives in 2019, and expanded to 16,000 employees next year. read more

Oil major prepares for fundamental shift towards lower-carbon energy sources

Ed Crooks and Anjli Raval in Houston

Royal Dutch Shell, one of the world’s biggest oil and gas groups, is aiming to become the largest electricity company by the 2030s, as it prepares for a fundamental shift in global energy supplies towards lower-carbon sources. Maarten Wetselaar, Shell’s director of gas and new energies, told the Financial Times that the group could develop a power business, including supplying customers, trading and providing equipment, that was the same size as its oil or gas operations. read more

Ron Bousso: MARCH 12, 2019

HOUSTON (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell urged U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration on Tuesday to tighten restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions from oil and gas production, instead of weakening them as planned.

Breaking from a decades-old tradition of avoiding criticism of U.S. government policies, Shell’s U.S. Country Chair Gretchen Watkins called on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to tighten rules to plug methane leaks, a potent greenhouse gas. read more

By Dulue Mbachu and Elisha Bala-Gbogbo: 13 March 2019, 03:00 GMT: Updated on 13 March 2019, 10:51 GMT

Niger River delta wracked by pipeline sabotage, crude theft

Buhari must act now or face ‘doomsday’ later, activist says

After the military government in 1995 executed nine Ogoni activists, including the writer Ken Saro-Wiwa, regional unrest spiraled into full-blown armed militancy in the past 15 years.

Fresh from his comfortable re-election, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari faces a huge hurdle to keep his vow to end the economy’s addiction to oil: win a lasting peace in the crude-rich Niger River delta.

The 76-year-old former military ruler will have to score a breakthrough that’s eluded previous governments in an area where armed groups and thieves pose a constant threat to the flow of crude. To carry out his plans to develop a backbone of stable power, roads and rail lines for agricultural expansion and industrialization in Africa’s most-populous nation, Buhari needs all the money he can get from oil, the source of two-thirds of government revenue. read more

AMSTERDAM, March 13 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell has teamed up with energy company Eneco and builder Van Oord in a bid to build two wind farms in the Dutch part of the North Sea, the companies said on Wednesday.

The tender for the wind farms, with total capacity of 750 megawatts (MW), is open until March 14 for bids that require no subsidies on electricity prices.

The Dutch were among the first to offer a ‘zero subsidy’ tender for wind power in 2017, with Sweden’s Vattenfall winning the right to build a 700 MW wind farm without price support. read more

March 12, 2019, 09:46:00 AM EDT By Reuters

By Ahmad Ghaddar

LONDON, March 12 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell has struck a deal with Dutch tank terminal firm HES International to partially restart a German oil refinery mothballed since 2011 in response to new restrictions on marine fuels, two trading sources told Reuters.

A new cap set by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) that will cut the sulphur content in shipping fuel to 0.5 percent from 3.5 percent from next year is set to be one of the biggest fundamental events to hit oil markets in years. read more

Mar. 12, 2019 2:58 PM ET|About: Royal Dutch Shell plc (RDS.A)|By: Carl Surran, SA News Editor

Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A +0.4%) urges the Trump administration to tighten restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions from oil and gas production, instead of weakening them as planned.

In unusually frank terms, Shell’s U.S. chief Gretchen Watkins told the CERAWeek conference today that the Environmental Protection Agency needs to tighten rules to plug methane leaks, saying “We don’t usually tell governments how to do their job but we’re ready to break with that and say, ‘Actually, we want to tell you how to do your job.'” read more

By Kevin Crowley and Alix Steel: 11 March 2019, 20:09 GMT: Updated on 11 March 2019, 21:38 GMT

Oil major aims to be top power producer by early 2030s

Shell seeks 8-12% returns in historically low margin business

Royal Dutch Shell Plc plans to become the world’s biggest power company despite electricity’s historically narrow margins.

The world’s second-largest oil explorer by market value is spending up to $2 billion a year on its new energies division, mainly to grow in a power sector it envisions delivering 8 percent to 12 percent annual returns, according to Maarten Wetselaar, director of Shell’s integrated gas new energies unit. read more

By Kevin Crowley: 11 March 2019, 16:16 GMT: Updated on 11 March 2019, 22:56 GMT

European major ‘actively looking’ for targets, Sawan says

Upstream director-in-waiting declines to comment on Endeavor

Royal Dutch Shell Plc is on the hunt for deals to bulk up its position in the Permian Basin, where it lags rivals Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp.

“We are definitely actively looking at opportunities,” Wael Sawan, Shell’s deepwater boss, said in an interview on the sidelines of IHS Markit’s CERAWeek conference on Monday. “If none ever come up then that’s a disappointing outcome.” Sawan is set to lead the European supermajor’s entire upstream division in July. read more

Mar. 11, 2019 1:59 PM ET|About: Royal Dutch Shell plc (RDS.A)| By: Carl Surran, SA News Editor

Colombia’s government says it signed two offshore exploration and production contracts with Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A, RDS.B) that will require the company to make $100M in initial investments.

Shell’s investment could surpass $650M if exploration continues, according to the president of Colombia’s National Hydrocarbons Agency.

The government recently modified contractual terms for offshore exploration and launched a new process that allows companies to apply to explore in areas of interest, offering 20 blocks as part of a strategy to boost the oil sector. read more

Royal Dutch Shell plans to become the world’s biggest power company despite electricity’s historically narrow margins.

Written by Bloomberg – 12/03/2019 7:40 am

The world’s second-largest oil explorer by market value is spending up to $2 billion a year on its new energies division, mainly to grow in a power sector it envisions delivering 8-12% annual returns, according to Maarten Wetselaar, director of Shell’s integrated gas new energies unit.

“We believe we can be the largest electricity power company in the world in the early 2030s,” Wetselaar said.

“We are not interested in the power business because we like what we saw in the last 20 years.

“We are interested because we think we like what we see in the next 20 years.” read more

7 March 2019

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Workers at Royal Dutch Shell’s Pernis refinery in the Netherlands might go on strike at the end of the month, after having rejected a proposed labour agreement, Dutch labour union FNV said on Thursday.

Workers at the 400,000 barrels per day refinery will vote on possible action on March 19 and 21, FNV spokesman Egbert Vellenberg said.

(Reporting by Bart Meijer; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

SOURCE

The agreement was signed by Maarten Wetselaar, Shell’s Director of Integrated Gas and New Energies together with Harib Al Kitani, CEO of Oman LNG in the presence of Ben van Beurden, CEO of Royal Dutch Shell.

The agreement will combine Shell’s experience of implementing technology and developing innovative solutions to support Oman LNG’s digitalisation drive to better equip it for the future.

Maarten Wetselaar said, “With energy transition and more demand for digitalisation, we are seeing the evolution of the industry. Innovative technology and data is creating an incredible opportunity in the energy industry, giving us the ability to track trends and make better decisions. We are delighted to collaborate with Oman LNG and explore new ways in which they can improve their asset efficiency and profitability, reduce operation costs, accelerate production and speed.” read more