“We have questions to answer” about single-use plastic waste, reveal internal emails from Shell
24 Dec 2022
Shell is under scrutiny as a result of internal emails put into the public domain relating to the controversial Shell Petrochemicals Complex situated along the Ohio River in Beaver County, Pennsylvania.
Extract from a related article
The multi-billion-dollar Shell facility was fully operational in November after years of construction and has already been charged by state environmental agencies for exceeding the annual limit for volatile organic compounds that create lung-damaging smog. Among the documents, released on December 9, was an email correspondence within Shell’s communications team.
Full details about the embarrassing content of Shell’s emails are provided in the article.
This is not the first time the toxic content of internal comms or other self-inflicted exposure has caught out Shell.
One example which immediately comes to mind is the memos sent by Shell EP chief Walter van de Vijver to the then Chairman of Royal Dutch Shell Group, Sir Philip Watts.
In one he wrote about how investors could not be “fooled” forever, and in the other he said he was “sick and tired about lying about the extent of our reserves issues”. But a month later Mr van de Vijver told staff to destroy a document outlining part of the reserves shortfall, because it was “dynamite”. (See: Shell bosses ‘fooled the market‘)
ANOTHER EXAMPLE
Shell internal emails reveal that serious consideration was given by senior Shell EP execs to exploiting the tragic events of 9/11 for desperate commercial purposes – to cover up investor deception about Shell’s claimed oil and gas reserves.
Aidan McKay said: “If I was Walter I would use this tragic event to introduce a little more conservatism (buying flexibility) into our story around production growth.”
The second batch of Shell internal emails circulated in the months leading up to 9/11 provides proof of the degree of concern over the issues that led to Shell executives considering such a distasteful strategy to manipulate the markets.
A FURTHER EXAMPLE OF EMBARRASSING CONTENT
Spectacular falling out of ‘Security Professionals’ at the top of Shell
In 2016, Bruce Culpepper, Shell’s then US Country Chairman and Shell Oil Company President, informed a senior Shell security corporate official that his department, “could not investigate their way out of a wet paper bag,” “they cannot investigate worth a shit,” and that he “did not want those fuckers involved,” in a specific situation.
A FINAL EXAMPLE
REUTERS: Shell critic says oil major targeting his website
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: 
MORE DETAILS:
A head-cut image of Alfred Donovan (now deceased) appears courtesy of The Wall Street Journal.
