In 2021, thousands of Dutch citizens took one of the largest carbon emitters in the world to court and won. Together with Friends of the Earth Netherlands (Milieudefensie) they won a historic court case against Royal Dutch Shell, the parent company of Shell Group, forcing the company to take climate action.
The judge ruled that Shell’s current climate policy would contribute to a level of climate change that would be so dangerous that it would impose a threat to human rights.read more
Dec 30th, 2022
by John Donovan.
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Large-scale polluter Shell loses legal battle
The Guardian: Isabella Kaminski: Thu 29 Dec 2022 12.00 GMT
Between 2004 and 2007, the villages of Oruma, Goi and Ikot Ada Udo in Nigeria were polluted with oil from infrastructure built by Royal Dutch Shell. More than 15 years later, in late December, the company finally agreed to pay four farmers and their communities €15m in compensation and install a leak detection system after a court in the Netherlands ruled that Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary was liable and the parent company had a duty of care.read more
Dec 24th, 2022
by John Donovan.
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BBC News
Shell to pay $16m to Nigerian farmers over oil damage
23 Dec 2022
Shell has agreed to pay $16m (£13m) to four Nigerian farmers and their communities to compensate for damage allegedly caused by pollution coming from leaks in its oil pipelines.
The sum was agreed in negotiations between the oil company and campaign group Friends of the Earth.
But it is being given on the basis of “no admission of liability”, a joint statement says.
Nigeria’s oil industry has been a major source of environmental damage.read more
Dec 23rd, 2022
by John Donovan.
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REUTERS
Shell to pay 15 mln euros in settlement over Nigerian oil spills
December 23, 20229:31 AM GM
AMSTERDAM, Dec 23 (Reuters) – Shell (SHEL.L) will pay 15 million euros ($15.9 million) to communities in Nigeria that were affected by multiple oil pipeline leaks in the Niger Delta, the oil company on Friday said in a joint statement with the Dutch division of Friends of the Earth.
The compensation is the result of a Dutch court case brought by Friends of the Earth, in which Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary last year was found to be responsible for the oil spills and was ordered to pay for damages to farmers.read more
Milieudefensie, the Dutch chapter of Friends of the Earth activists who won a landmark climate case against Shell in 2021, now urge more than two dozen other multinationals, including BP, Exxon, Vitol, and LyondellBasell, to implement plans to slash emissions by at least 45 percent by 2030 from 2019 levels.
In a letter sent on Thursday to 29 “big polluters”, including Shell, BP, Exxon, Vitol, LyondellBasell, RWE, Unilever, Uniper, Stellantis, Schiphol, ABN AMRO, and others, Milieudefensie asks the companies to respond how they plan to cut their Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions by at least 45 percent by 2030.read more
A Dutch court in January ruled that Shell had polluted the Niger Delta and ordered the energy giant to pay compensation. But many are now questioning whether it is enough to put right the misery suffered by the people.
This year’s court ruling by an appeals court in the Netherlands — in favour of Milieudefensie/Friends of the Earth Netherlands and four Nigerian farmers — was heralded by some of them as justice.read more
Royal Dutch Shell has confirmed that it will appeal against the landmark Dutch court ruling calling for the oil giant to cut its carbon emissions faster.
A court in The Hague reached the milestone verdict in May this year after Friends of the Earth and over 17,000 co-plaintiffs successfully argued that Shell had been aware of the dangerous consequences of CO2 emissions for decades, and that its climate targets did not go far enough.read more
London (CNN Business)A Dutch court has ruled that Royal Dutch Shell must dramatically reduce its carbon emissions in a landmark climate decision that could have far reaching consequences for oil companies.
The company must slash its CO2 emissions by 45% by 2030 from 2019 levels, according to a judgment from a district court in The Hague on Wednesday. That includes emissions from its own operations and from the energy products it sells.
This is the first time that a court has ruled a company needs to reduce its emissions in line with global climate goals, according to Friends of the Earth Netherlands, an environmental campaigning group that brought the case against Shell (RDSA).
The verdict could pave the way for similar cases to be brought in other countries, forcing oil companies to reduce fossil fuel production. It comes just a week after the influential International Energy Agency told oil companies they need to stop drilling for oil and gas right now to prevent a climate catastrophe.
The Anglo-Dutch company announced plans in September to become a net zero emissions company by 2050, a target that includes emissions from its products. It is currently targeting a 20% reduction in carbon intensity by 2030, and 45% by 2035.
“This is a turning point in history,” said Roger Cox, lawyer for Friends of the Earth Netherlands.
“This case is unique because it is the first time a judge has ordered a large polluting corporation to comply with the Paris Climate Agreement. This ruling may also have major consequences for other big polluters,” added Cox.
The impact of the decision will be amplified because the court relied on global human rights standards and international instruments on climate change in arriving at its decision, according to legal experts.
“I can imagine this will inspire a series of other cases against companies, especially those active in the oil extraction industries like Shell,” said Eric De Brabandere, a professor of international dispute settlement at Leiden University in the Netherlands. “It is a groundbreaking decision, it’s really a landmark.”
Mounting pressure
While Shell claims that its carbon intensity targets are aligned with the Paris Agreement — which aims to limit global temperature increases to 1.5 degrees Celsius — Friends of the Earth Netherlands argues that the company’s ongoing investments into oil and gas extraction show that it doesn’t take climate change seriously.
The court found that Shell’s carbon emissions pose a “very serious threat” to Dutch residents, and that the company has an “individual responsibility” to reduce emissions. The court said the company would have “total freedom” to comply with its order and to shape corporate policy.
Shell indicated it would appeal the ruling, which is immediately enforceable, according to De Brabandere.
“We are investing billions of dollars in low-carbon energy, including electric vehicle charging, hydrogen, renewables and biofuels. We want to grow demand for these products and scale up our new energy businesses even more quickly. We will continue to focus on these efforts and fully expect to appeal today’s disappointing court decision,” a Shell spokesperson said in a statement.
Oil companies are facing mounting pressure from shareholders and activists to ditch fossil fuels and invest into cleaner energy sources. The ruling handed down on Wednesday “may sound revolutionary, but, in fact, it is in line with what long term investors are increasingly asking companies to do anyway,” said Cees van Dam, a professor of international business and human rights at the Rotterdam School of Management.
At its annual meeting on Wednesday, ExxonMobil (XOM) will face a challenge from activist investor Engine No. 1, which is seeking to replace
Jan 29th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Court orders Shell to pay Nigeria farmers for oil pollution
The appellate court in the Netherlands ruled Friday that Shell’s claims of sabotage along the Nigerian pipeline are not supported by evidence.ByClyde Hughes:WORLD NEWS: JAN. 29, 2021 / 8:03 AMJan. 29 (UPI) — A Dutch court ruled on Friday that oil company Royal Dutch Shell must compensate farmers in Nigeria for oil spills that occurred years ago.The Court of Appeals ruled that Shell’s Nigerian branch must pay for spills in the Niger River Delta between 2004 and 2007, which spurred a civil case from four farmers that lasted for years.
Jan 29th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Dutch appeals court rules Shell Nigeria unit responsible for oil leaks
Reuters Staff: JANUARY 2021/ 10:32
AMSTERDAM, Jan 29 (Reuters) – A Dutch appeals court on Friday said that the Nigerian subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell was responsible for oil pipeline leaks in the Niger Delta and ordered it to pay unspecified damages farmers.
The decision went a step further than a 2013 ruling by a lower court, saying that Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary was responsible for multiple cases of oil pollution.
Reporting by Anthony Deutsch; editing by Jason Neelyread more
Jan 29th, 2021
by John Donovan.
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Shell Is Back in Court for Nigeria Oil Spills Liability Ruling
Bloomberg News: Laura Hurst and Diederik Baazil: Jan 29, 2021
(Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc faces the latest ruling in a long-running legal dispute with Nigerian farmers who say the energy giant is responsible for oil leaks that have polluted their villages.
The case is the first in which a company and its foreign subsidiary have been tried in the Netherlands for allegedly breaching duty of care abroad, and it could have far-reaching implications for future suits brought against oil firms.read more
Companies that make money selling coal, oil and gas could be held more accountable if judges in the Hague order fossil fuel giant Shell to cut its emissions.
Backed by 17,000 Dutch citizens, climate activists are wrestling fossil fuel giant Royal Dutch Shell in court over its responsibility to cut emissions to levels that comply with global treaties.
On the last of four days of hearings in the District Court of the Hague, seven environmental groups led by Friends of the Earth Netherlands pressed the court to force the oil major to commit to the Paris Agreement target of keeping warming to 1.5C. This would mean cutting net carbon emissions by 45% from today’s levels in a decade, the campaigners say, at a time where Shell is still investing heavily in fossil fuels.read more
Apr 5th, 2019
by John Donovan.
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ByAssociated Press: April 5 at 7:01 AM
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — Climate activists are planning to deliver a court summons to Shell in a court case aimed at forcing the energy giant to do more to rein in carbon emissions.
The summons is being delivered to Shell’s headquarters in The Hague on Friday afternoon.
The move comes a year after the Dutch branch of Friends of the Earth sent a letter to Shell’s CEO Ben van Beurden accusing the company of “breaching its legal duty of care” by causing climate damage across the globe.read more
London (CNN Business)Royal Dutch Shell is making a bet on home battery storage as it tries to boost its sustainable energy business.
The oil giant announced Friday that it has purchased Sonnen, a German startup that makes residential battery systems that store energy generated from solar panels.
The move puts Shell in direct competition with companies such as Samsung (SSNLF), LG (LPL) and Tesla (TSLA), which makes a home battery system called the Powerwall.read more
London (CNN Business)Climate activists are preparing legal action aimed at forcing Royal Dutch Shell to exit the oil business.
A coalition of environmental groups in the Netherlands said Tuesday that they will hand over a court summons on April 5 if Shell does not change its business model to comply with the Paris climate accord.read more
May 29th, 2018
by John Donovan.
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Reuters Staff: Tuesday 29 May 2018
LONDON (Reuters) – Friends of the Earth plans to file a lawsuit against Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L), accusing the oil company of failing to act on climate change, the environmental activist group said on Tuesday.
Shell has set out “ambitions” to halve carbon emissions by 2050 and expand in renewables, but the Anglo-Dutch company has come under pressure from investors and activists to reduce its carbon footprint and comply with the 2015 international Paris climate agreement.read more
Britain’s largest shareholder advisory groups have called on investors in Royal Dutch Shell to reject growing demands for the oil giant to take full responsibility for its impact on the environment.
Shell faces a binding shareholder vote tomorrow to decide whether to adopt rigorous accountability standards to bring its operations into line with the Paris climate agreement. Glass Lewis and ISS have urged shareholders to reject the “unduly burdensome” and “problematic” proposal.read more
A Netherlands environmental NGO has threatened to bring yet another climate change lawsuit against Royal Dutch Shell if it does not fundamentally change its business operations.
While multinational corporations are constantly being threatened with legal action, this specific one is unique.
It has the hallmarks of recent climate lawsuits against Shell in the U.S., but would be based in a court system that has mandated stricter climate policy before.
Can non-shareholder private entities force oil and gas companies to accept lower returns on capital? Investors in Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) (RDS.B) will receive an answer to this question if an environmental NGO moves forward with a threatened lawsuit in the Netherlands that would require the company to do exactly that.
Notably, Shell recently committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 50% through 2050 via billions of dollars of investments in renewable energy capacity. The NGO in question, Friends of the Earth Netherlands (aka Milieudefensie), deems this effort insufficient and insists that the company must abandon its oil and gas reserves and be “net zero” (i.e., no net emissions of greenhouse gases) by that date instead. While Shell’s investors largely shrugged off the threat (see figure), if they even noticed it at all, the development represents the opening of a new front in the lawsuits being waged by U.S. municipalities against the company and its Big Oil competitors.read more
Apr 4th, 2018
by John Donovan.
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April 4. 2018
An environmental campaign group on Wednesday threatened to take Anglo-Dutch oil giant Royal Dutch Shell to court should it fail to comply with climate targets set out under the Paris Agreement.
“Friends of the Earth Netherlands announced today that they will take Shell to court if it does not act on demands to stop its destruction of the climate,” the group said in a statement, accusing the firm of being “among the ten biggest climate polluters worldwide”.read more
Apr 4th, 2018
by John Donovan.
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Green group demands that the oil firm moves away from fossil fuels to comply with the Paris deal, in the latest of a rising number of climate litigation casesread more
Sep 19th, 2016
by John Donovan.
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REGULARLY UPDATED: Links to over 500 articles (and radio and TV broadcasts) by a host of publishers including the FT, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Dow Jones Newswires, Bloomberg, New York Times, CNBC, Forbes etc. Plus UK House of Commons Select Committee Hansard records, information on U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission website, legal documents filed in the U.S. Courts, all containing references to the Donovan’s, their Shell related websites, or their former company, Don Marketing. Includes newspaper and magazine articles, newsletters, video clip links and interview transcripts. All in date order. In addition, there are references to our websites and/or our activities, published in over 100 books. In all, over 550 externally published references to date including articles originated by news agencies such as Reuters or Dow Jones, syndicated to a variety of individual publishers such as the New York Times or The Washington Post. Plus over 60,000 Shell related articles published on our own Shell focussed websites. read more
Aug 5th, 2016
by John Donovan.
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By Jimitota Onoyume: AUGUST 5, 2016
PORT HARCOURT— Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth of Nigeria has called on the Federal Government not to include Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC, in any body constituted to oversee the clean up exercise in Ogoni, Rivers State.
Executive Director of the organisation, Dr Godwin Ojo, in his opening remark at a colloquium, yesterday, in Port Harcourt, to commemorate the 5th anniversary of the release of the recommendations of United Nations Environment Programme, UNEP, on Ogoni-land, said that the alleged insistence by the oil company to sit on the Governing Council and Steering Board was worrisome. read more
Royal Dutch Shell has decided to give up all but one of its federal offshore leases in the Chukchi Sea, bringing what appears to be an anticlimactic end to its multibillion-dollar effort to turn those icy Arctic waters off northwestern Alaska into a new oil-producing frontier.
“After extensive consideration and evaluation, we have made the decision to relinquish all but one of our federal offshore leases in Alaska’s Chukchi Sea. This action is consistent with our earlier decision not to explore offshore Alaska for the foreseeable future,” company spokesman Curtis Smith said in an email on Monday.read more
Mar 30th, 2016
by John Donovan.
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“We can confirm that representatives of the Dutch Financial Intelligence and Investigation Service (FIOD) and the Dutch Public Prosecutor recently visited Shell at its headquarters in The Hague,” a spokesman said.
“The visit was related to OPL 245, an offshore block in Nigeria that was the subject of a series of long-standing disputes with the Federal Government of Nigeria. Shell is cooperating with the authorities and is looking into the allegations, which it takes seriously.”read more
An email seen by the Guardian invites energy attaches from the EU’s 28 countries to visit the Shell technology Centre, take an ‘oil majors and oil paintings’ tour of the Van Gogh Museum, and have lunch with Shell’s president in the Netherlands.
Brook Riley, a spokesman for Friends of the Earth Europe said: “It is disgraceful to see Shell splurging profits from dirty, dangerous gas extraction on a blatant PR exercise, with the full support of the Dutch government. It is no wonder the EU’s energy plans are assuming zero improvements in efficiency or renewables. They are acting as though climate change does not exist.”read more
Jan 2nd, 2016
by John Donovan.
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By NAN on January 2, 2016
An Environmental Rights group has condemned what it called the ‘slow response of Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) to the oil spill incident of July 12,2015 at the Adibawa Oil field, operated by the company.
Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) made the condemnation in its field report on the oil field, a copy which was made available to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Yenagoa on Saturday.
The group regretted that more than six months after the oil leak incident was reported, oil recovery was yet to be completed, exposing the environment to continued pollution by spilled crude.read more
Royal Dutch Shell is braced for a flood of compensation claims against its Nigerian business over oil spills, after a ruling that makes it more vulnerable to lawsuits.
Judges in The Hague, Netherlands, ordered Shell to hand over documents that could shed light on the cause of spills, which the firm blamed on sabotage by oil thieves.
The ruling is a blow for Shell, which had argued that cases against its Nigerian joint venture SPDC should be heard in Nigeria where the plaintiffs are based, and where companies cannot be held responsible for spills caused by sabotage.read more
Dec 18th, 2015
by John Donovan.
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Court rules Royal Dutch Shell can be held liable for oil spills at its subsidiary in Nigeria
By Reuters: 1:34PM GMT 18 Dec 2015
A Dutch appeals court has ruled that Royal Dutch Shell can be held liable for oil spills at its subsidiary in Nigeria, potentially opening the way for other compensation claims against the multinational.
Judges in The Hague ordered Shell to make available to the court documents that might shed light on the cause of the oil spills and whether leading managers were aware of them.
A lower Dutch court in 2013 had found that Shell’s Dutch-based parent company could not be held liable for leakages of oil at its Nigerian subsidiary.read more
Dec 18th, 2015
by John Donovan.
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Dutch court: Nigeria farmers can sue Shell in Netherlands
[JURIST] The Hague Court of Appeals [official website] ruled Friday that the Royal Dutch Shell [corporate website] can be sued in a Dutch court for their involvement in oil leaks in Nigeria. The ruling [text, in Dutch] stems from a suit brought by four Nigerian farmers that claimed Shell and its Nigerian subsidiaries were responsible for oil leaks leading to their lands being damaged. In a statement explaining their reasoning for their decision, the Court of Appeals said, “It cannot be established in advance that the parent company is not liable for possible negligence of the Nigerian operating company.”read more
Dec 18th, 2015
by John Donovan.
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By Thomas Escritt: FRIDAY, 18 DEC 2015
THE HAGUE (Reuters) – A Dutch appeals court ruled on Friday that Royal Dutch Shell can be held liable for oil spills at its subsidiary in Nigeria, potentially opening the way for other compensation claims against the multinational.
Judges in The Hague ordered Shell to make available to the court documents that might shed light on the cause of the oil spills and whether leading managers were aware of them.
Friday’s ruling overturned a finding by a lower Dutch court in 2013 that Shell’s Dutch-based parent company could not be held liable for spills at its Nigerian subsidiary.
The legal dispute dates back to 2008 when four Nigerian farmers and campaign group Friends of the Earth filed suit against the oil company in the Netherlands, where its global headquarters is based.read more
ANCHORAGE, Alaska, June 3 (UPI) — With pressure building on Shell’s port activity in Seattle, an Alaskan energy coalition said the state’s economy won’t be held hostage by external activists.
“We don’t like our economy being held hostage by activists from another state,” Anne Seneca, president of the Consumer Energy Alliance-Alaska, said in a statement.
With federal approval in hand, Shell said it may start its drilling campaign in the arctic waters off the coast of Alaska as early as this summer. Shell’s drilling rig, Polar Pioneer, is stationed at the Port of Seattle ahead of the program’s start. In mid-May, a flotilla of kayakers took to the waters off the coast of Seattle to protest Shell.read more
Nov 30th, 2014
by John Donovan.
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By John Donovan
The lead article in The Sunday Times Business section today (authored by Simon Duke and David Smith) says that Britain is at the forefront of a crackdown on corporate tax avoidance – a blitz on tax avoidance by multinationals.
The UK Treasury is planning a consultation on forcing multinationals like Royal Dutch Shell to declare how much tax they pay in every country in which they operate.
Extract
Country by Country reporting would introduce greater transparency into the complex structures used by big companies to minimise their tax liabilities…read more
Nov 26th, 2014
by John Donovan.
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The significance of the Newsweek article is therefore threefold: firstly Shell appears to have misled the court in the Hague which from a reputational perspective is extremely damaging (hence the headline of the article), secondly the case will now return to court for a retrial, and thirdly the lawyers and witnesses in the original case may be subject to legal action by the Dutch authorities.
I’m not a lawyer, but the following is my understanding of the significance of the Newsweek article and the case brought by the “Friends of the Earth”.
The two Nigerian cases are actually very significant to anyone forced to confront Shell in a Dutch court.
Unlike the UK or US, there is no “discovery” in Holland and no opportunity to request documents from the other side to support a case.
The system works when everyone is honest, but fails dismally when US or UK lawyers see their role as “misleading the court” to the advantage of their client. For many lawyers, this is of course the basis of hearings in the US and the UK.read more
Nov 18th, 2014
by John Donovan.
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“The walls are beginning to close in on Shell. The image that the company would like to present of itself, in the role of the victim instead of the perpetrator, is crumbling more and more,”
The oil company Shell lied to a Dutch court about steps taken to minimize the risk of oil spills during a court case brought against the multinational oil and gas company by four Nigerian farmers and Friends of the Earth, lawyers acting for the claimants alleged today.
Friends of the Earth (FoE) Netherlands and a group of four farmers from villages in the Niger Delta were aiming to claim compensation from Shell for damages caused when a major oil pipeline burst, causing devastation to local communities.read more
Aug 6th, 2014
by John Donovan.
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By John Donovan
With its usual determination, Greenpeace continues to mount a sustained innovative campaign against the plans of Royal Dutch Shell to drill in Arctic waters.
It is worth remembering that Shell has in the past used dirty tricks, including undercover activity by its paid spies/infiltrators, in an attempt to combat and undermine Greenpeace.
Shell still has its own internal army of spies now operating under the name of Shell Global Security (previously as Corporate Affairs Security). I am sure they continue to closely monitor Greenpeace (and me). read more
Jul 8th, 2014
by John Donovan.
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ARTICLE BY LARA ADEJORO PUBLISHED 8 JULY 2014 BY THE DAILY TIMES OF NIGERIA
The disclosure by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) that the Nigerian government was frustrating the release of funds for the implementation of the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) Assessment on Ogoniland has come as a rude shock and the Ogoni people demand an answer, the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) has said.
Augustine Igbuku, the Ogoni Restoration Project Manager for SPDC told the House of Representatives Committee on Environment that Shell was willing to contribute to the $1 billion Ogoni Restoration Fund but was being frustrated by the lack of government structure and a legal framework for the Hydrocarbon Restoration Project (HYPREP), the ad hoc intervention agency set up by the same government.read more
May 28th, 2014
by John Donovan.
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Extracts from an article published by Eco-Business 28 May 2014
Shell, the world’s largest oil company, believes that governments will not damage its business by taking rapid action on climate change, and says all its oil reserves will be needed and sold at a profit.
In a robust reply to a recent report by the Carbon Tracker Initiative, Shell explains the company reasoning for investing in tar sands and other high cost and difficult-to-extract oil reserves. It says that an ever-expanding global economy, fuelled by population growth and great prosperity, will need more and more oil and gas at least until 2050. This will support high prices.read more
Sep 2nd, 2013
by John Donovan.
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While Greenpeace might find itself facing more burdensome regulation of its campaign against drilling in the Arctic, Shell can avoid any regulation of its efforts to influence government policy in the other direction by using in-house lobbyists.
Some deficiencies of the transparency of lobbying, non-party campaigning and trade union administration bill have been widely trailed. Part 1 of the bill fails to impose transparency obligations on all but a fraction of professional lobbyists. Meanwhile, the uncertainty of rules on non-party campaigning in part 2 poses a serious threat to campaigning by charities and others (Lobbying bill ‘could put charities at risk of prosecution’, 2 September).read more
Jun 20th, 2013
by John Donovan.
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Controversy relating to Shell’s evil track record in Nigeria is not limited to oil spill pollution. There is also the corruption, plunder, collusion, militants on Shell’s pay roll and Shell spying on the host government. Graphic from the Guardian Article: Unloveable Shell: the Goddess of Oil (Comments by John Donovan)
Claims by Shell that sabotage is responsible for most oil spilt in Nigeria have come under fire. A Dutch agency found that the oil giants statements were based on disputed evidence and flawed investigations.
Friends of the Earth International
Amnesty International
AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS, 19 JUNE 2013 – Claims by Shell that sabotage is responsible for most oil spilt in Nigeria have come under fire. A Dutch agency found that the oil giant’s statements were based on disputed evidence and flawed investigations.read more
Jun 19th, 2013
by John Donovan.
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Oil company Shell will resume talks next week in London with lawyers representing 15,000 of the poorest people in the world who are claiming millions of pounds’ compensation for oil spills on the Niger delta. But Martyn Day, of Leigh Day law firm which is acting for the communities, said the case could still go to a full high court trial in London in 2014.
The company has admitted liability for two spills but disputes the quantity of oil and damage done
Oil company Shell will resume talks next week in London with lawyers representing 15,000 of the poorest people in the world who are claiming millions of pounds’ compensation for oil spills on the Niger delta. But Martyn Day, of Leigh Day law firm which is acting for the communities, said the case could still go to a full high court trial in London in 2014.
The Shell petroleum development company of Nigeria (SPDC) has admitted liability for two spills from a pipeline in the Niger delta in 2008, but the company disputes the quantity of oil that was spilled and the damage that was done to livelihoods and the environment near the coastal village of Bodo in Rivers State. Oil spill experts working for the communities estimate that nearly 500,000 barrels leaked from the company pipeline over several months, Shell claims it was far less.read more
Jun 19th, 2013
by John Donovan.
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The National Contact Point (NCP) agency will today give Shell a rap on the knuckles for its reporting of its spills in the Niger Delta region, some of which have been highly damaging to the environment. NCP has reached this conclusion following an investigation into accusations by Amnesty International and Friends of the Earth International that Shell has exaggerated the proportion of spills caused by sabotage to avoid paying compensation and to reduce damage to its reputation.
TOM BAWDEN: WEDNESDAY 19 JUNE 2013
Shell’s persistent claims that theft and sabotage are responsible for almost all the oil spills at its operation in Nigeria could have been exaggerated, an international watchdog has found.
The National Contact Point (NCP) agency will today give Shell a rap on the knuckles for its reporting of its spills in the Niger Delta region, some of which have been highly damaging to the environment.
The agency, set up to oversee OECD guidelines on multi-national companies, said: “Given the many years of discussion about the causes of oil spills in Nigeria, Royal Dutch Shell management should have had a more cautious attitude about the percentage of oil spills caused by the sabotage,” noting that the data they are based on is “not absolute”.read more
Jan 30th, 2013
by John Donovan.
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A Dutch court has ruled that a subsidiary of international oil giant Royal Dutch Shell should be held responsible for pipeline leaks poisoning farmland in Nigeria. It was believed to be the first time a Dutch court has held a multinational’s foreign subsidiary liable for environmental damage and ordered it to pay damages.
A Friends of the Earth banner outside court ahead of the case of Nigerian farmers against Shell, in The Hague, Netherlands.(Photo: Peter Dejong, AP)
January 30, 2013
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A Dutch court has ruled that a subsidiary of international oil giant Royal Dutch Shell should be held responsible for pipeline leaks poisoning farmland in Nigeria.
In its ruling Wednesday, the Hague Civil Court rejected most of a landmark case brought by Nigerian farmers and environmental pressure group Friends of the Earth against Shell, saying the leaking pipelines were was caused by saboteurs, not Shell negligence.
However, in one case the judges ordered a subsidiary, Shell Nigeria, to compensate a farmer for breach of duty of care by making it too easy for saboteurs to open an oil well head that leaked on to his land.read more
Nov 17th, 2012
by John Donovan.
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By Zainab Usman, 16 November 2012:
opinion
Legal action against Shell failed in Nigerian courts. So now villagers from the Niger delta are bringing the fight to Shell in their home country of the Netherlands.
In the latest case of Nigerians seeking justice abroad for crimes within Nigeria, a group of villagers from the Niger delta has taken oil behemoth Royal Dutch Shell to court in the Netherlands over alleged environmental pollution and “corporate crimes”.
Nigeria, the leading oil producer in Africa and eighth largest in the world, has most of its oil deposits located in the wetland and mangrove region of the Niger delta. Decades of oil extraction have left much of the region’s vegetation, farmlands, fishponds and drinking water polluted, and contributed to the impoverishment of much of its local population.read more
Britain is sitting on a £1.5 trillion shale gas bonanza that could be worth more than the remaining North Sea gas.
The amount is bigger than previously thought and would potentially bring energy price stability and independence from imports for decades.
Although only about ten per cent of the gas is in unpopulated areas suitable for extraction, it would still be worth £150 billion.
The level of untapped shale gas will be confirmed next month in a study by the British Geological Survey, commissioned by the Department of Energy and Climate Change, according to industry sources.read more
Worldwide concern regarding a 2011 leak at one of Royal Dutch Shell’s (NYSE:RDSA)(NYSE:RDSB) oil fields in Nigeria has gained critical mass; so far this week, the company has been trending on Twitter.
Short phrases like “Payback time for Big Oil,” “Justice for the people,” and “Tell parliament to end oil impunity” have littered the company’s feed over the past few days.
Many of the tweets include a link to a petition sponsored by the advocacy group Avaaz, urging the Nigerian Parliament to fine Shell $5 billion for the 2011 Bonga Oil Spill. In the petition, Avaaz describes Shell as a “giant oil polluter” responsible for a spill that “devastated the lives of millions of people.”read more
Oct 20th, 2012
by John Donovan.
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By Simona Sikimic: SATURDAY OCTOBER 20, 2012
Law, it is often said is what separates us from the barbarians. But law can also be used to stop so-called civilizing forces from performing barbaric actions abroad. As four Nigerian farmers and fishermen take oil giants Shell to court, this premise will be tested to the maximum.
If they succeed, a new avenue for seeking remuneration, and through it the compliance of more ethical practices, will be secured. If they fail, the cloak of immunity that has for too long surrounded multinationals working in the developing world will be drawn tighter still.read more
Oct 18th, 2012
by John Donovan.
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By Adam Robert Green: 17 October 2012
Three legal challenges against Shell for pollution charges in the Niger Delta could set precedents for how multinational companies are sued for environmental damages in developing countries. All three inquiries – in the UK, the Netherlands and the US – are being judged in countries other than the one in which damages are said to have occurred.
Shell’s trial in the Netherlands for oil pollution in the Niger Delta is a landmark; the first time a Dutch company has been brought before a home court to answer charges of environmental damage caused abroad. The UK High Court is also reviewing a case concerning the Anglo-Dutch company’s Nigeria operations.read more
LONDON—Royal Dutch ShellRDSA +0.28% PLC Thursday appeared in court in the Netherlands for the first time over the actions of one of its foreign subsidiaries, facing compensation claims for environmental damage from oil spills in Nigeria.
The case could set a legal precedent over how Dutch companies are held responsible for the actions of their foreign subsidiaries.
The suit has been brought by environmental group Friends of the Earth Netherlands and four Nigerian farmers, who are seeking compensation over claims that oil spills from Shell pipelines in Nigeria have damaged their livelihood. They also say they want the Anglo-Dutch oil company, headquartered in The Hague, to complete a cleanup of the spills.read more
Oct 11th, 2012
by John Donovan.
Comments are off for this post
Four Nigerian villagers are suing Royal Dutch Shell for failing to clean-up oils spills that have destroyed their farms and damaged their health in landmark case that has started in The Hague.
By Louise Armitstead and Emily Gosden: 6:58PM BST 11 Oct 2012
The fishermen and farmers, who are backed by Friends of the Earth, are seeking unspecified damages for polluting land and waterways around their homes. That campaigners said that if successful, the case could open flood-gates to a raft of claims for compensation on Shell and other oil majors.
Channa Samkalden, a lawyer representing the Nigerians, told the court that Shell had allowed its pipelines to fall into disrepair and then had not cleaned up the mess from subsequent leaks. She said: “Shell knew for a long time that the pipeline was damaged but didn’t do anything. They could have stopped the leaks.”read more
OVER 500 EXTERNAL PUBLICATIONS CITING OUR SHELL WEBSITES
See our link list of over 500 articles by the FT, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Bloomberg, Forbes, Dow Jones Newswires, New York Times, CNBC etc, plus UK House of Commons Select Committee Hansard records, information on U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission websiteetc. all containing references to our Shell focussed websites, or our website founders Alfred and John Donovan. Includes TV documentary features in English and German, newspaper and magazine articles, radio interviews, newsletters etc. Plus academic papers, Stratfor intelligence reports and UK, U.S. and Australian state/parliamentary publications, also citing our Shell websites. Click on this link to see the entire list, all in date order with a link to an index of over 100 books also containing references to our websites and/or our activities.
John Donovan, the website owner A head-cut image of Alfred Donovan (now deceased) appears courtesy of The Wall Street Journal.
JOHN DONOVAN, THE OWNER OF THIS AND SEVERAL OTHER SHELL FOCUSSED WEBSITES
SHELL PRELUDE TO DISASTER
The links below are to a series of articles, many triggered by a well-placed whistleblower directly involved in the pioneering Royal Dutch Shell Prelude project. Includes articles by Mr Bill Campbell above, the retired distinguished HSE Group Auditor of Shell International and another retired Shell guru with a track record of spotting potential pitfalls in major Shell projects.
The campaign waged on this website by John Donovan to persuade Edward Heerema to rename the worlds biggest ship, The Pieter Schelte - which he named after his late father, Pieter Schelte Heerema, a former Officer in the German Waffen-SS - has been successful. On Friday 6 February 2015, Allseas announced that it was changing the ships name, and on 9 February announced the new name - Pioneering Spirit.
GLOBAL NEWS COVERAGE: FEBRUARY 2010
MORE INFORMATION: Contact details for over 176,000 employees and contractors of Royal Dutch Shell reached John Donovan and some environmental and human rights groups, ostensibly from disaffected Shell staff calling for a “peaceful corporate revolution” at the company. The database, from Shell’s internal directory, contained names and telephone numbers for all the company’s work force worldwide, including some home numbers. It was supplied with a 170 page covering note, explaining that it was being circulated by “116 concerned employees of Shell dispersed throughout the USA, the UK, and the Netherlands”, to highlight the harm done by the company’s operations in Nigeria. John Donovan brought the leak to the attention of Shell. Tests proved that the data was authentic and he destroyed the database after being informed by Mr. Richard Wiseman, the then Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer of Royal Dutch Shell Plc, that the confidential information if publicly disclosed, could put Shell employees and contractors in real danger.
This is not a Shell website. That fact should be abundantly plain from the overall content of this home page and our sister Shell focussed websites, including shellnazihistory.com. Click on the Disclaimer link at top of this page for more information. You Can Be Sure Shell does not endorse or approve of this website. There are no subscription charges nor do we solicit or accept donations. It is an entirely free to use website drawing attention to the negative side of Shell while also publishing positive news about the company. The Shell logo image with the white text used on this website, as per the above example, is in the public domain because its copyright has expired and its author is anonymous. It can be found on WIKIMEDIA COMMONS. Our shellenergy.websitepublishes Shell Energy customer complaints posted on Trustpilot where there is an ample supply. Use this link for Shell’s own website.
Shell Breaking News
Shell Renewables Head to Leave Amid Fossil Fuel ShiftJune 30, 2023 14:49Financial PostBreadcrumb Trail Links PMN Business Shell Plc’s European renewable power boss Thomas Brostrom has decided to leave the company as the oil supermajor revises its strategy to focus more investment into fossil fuels. Author of the article: Bloomberg News …
Shell and BP take a beating as bank woes hit crude pricesMarch 15, 2023 17:36Proactive InvestorsBP PLC (LSE:BP.) and Royal Dutch Shell PLC (LSE:SHEL, NYSE:SHEL) shares have taken a hit, dropping over 8%, due to a sell-off in the banking sector.
The natural resources market has been volatile, with Brent Crude and West Texas Intermediate falling by 4- …
Shell CEO Pay Up 50%March 9, 2023 21:23Manufacturing Business TechnologyCEO of Royal Dutch Shell Ben van Beurden speaks at a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, June 21, 2017. Shell paid outgoing Chief Executive Ben van Beurden a total of 9.7 million pounds ($11.5 million) in 2022 as the …
Former Shell CEO's pay jumped 53% to $11.5m in 2022March 9, 2023 11:17Gulf NewsBen van Beurden, chief executive officer of Royal Dutch Shell, speaks during the 26th World Gas Conference in Paris, France, June 2, 2015
Image Credit: Reuters
London: Shell's former chief executive, Ben van Beurden, received a pay package of 9.7 …
SHELL’S ROLE IN NIGERIAN OPL 245 BRIBERY SCANDAL
Whatever fig leaves they might be trying to use to hide the truth, Shell and Eni paid over $1bn to a company called Malabu for the OPL 245 licence. Even though the payment was channelled through the Nigerian government, it was clear that Shell knew that the ultimate beneficiary was Dan Etete, the former minister of petroleum. Etete is the owner of Malabu, to whom he awarded the licence when he was Nigerian Minister of Petroleum.
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.
MORE INFORMATION
Shell appeased and collaborated with the Nazis. The oil giant instructed its employees in the Netherlands to complete a form giving particulars about their descent, which for some, amounted to a self-declared death warrant. Shell used slave labor and was a close business partner in Germany of I.G. Farben, the notorious Nazi run chemical giant that also used slave labor and supplied the Zyklon-B gas used during the Holocaust to exterminate millions of people, including children. Shell continued the partnership with the Nazis in the years after the retirement of Sir Henri and even after his death. It was money generated on Shell forecourts around the world, profiteering from cartel oil prices, that funded the Nazi party and saved it from financial collapse. Evidence about Shell's Nazi connections can be found in extracts from "A History of Royal Dutch Shell" Volumes 1 and 2 authored by historians paid by Shell, who had unrestricted access to Shell archives. There are 67 pages in total, so takes some time to download.
Photograph (full size here) shows a Swastika flag flying at the head office of Royal Dutch Petroleum, 30 Carel van Bylandtlaan, The Hague, during the Nazi occupation of the in World War II (From Image Database Hague Municipal)
Sir Henri Deterding, the founder of the Royal Dutch Shell Group - known as "The Most Powerful Man in the World" - who became an ardent Nazi and financial supporter of Hitler and the Nazi party.
Reading between the lines in various legal documents, it seems that the allegations are that after the technology in question had been disclosed to a Shell company in the USA, the information was passed to Shell in the Netherlands in breach of confidentiality. And Royal Dutch Shell subsequently exploited the technology without payment or credit to the company holding the rights; Newton Research Partners. The inference seems to be that Twister B.V. was founded by Shell partly on trade secrets stolen from Bloom/Newton.
DISCLAIMER: This is not a Shell website nor is it officially endorsed by or affiliated with Royal Dutch Shell Plc. Originally co-founded by the late Alfred Donovan and his son John, it is now operated by John, Shell's "No.1 Enemy", aided by an expert team, with invaluable support from retired Shell senior executives and officials as guest contributors and leaked information from Shell insiders. (JOHN DONOVAN, WEBSITE OWNER) For nearly a decade, we have operated globally under the Royal Dutch Shell Plc top level domain name, dealing on Shell’s reluctant behalf with job applications, business proposals, Shell pension enquiries, shareholder enquiries, complaints, invitations to speak at conferences, an approach from the Dutch Defence Ministry and even terrorist threats. All meant for Shell. Prospect magazine has aptly described this website as being:"An open wound for Shell": WIPO proceedings by Shell to seize the domain name failed. NO SUBSCRIPTION CHARGES: All of our watchdog activities monitoring Royal Dutch Shell, including operating this website, are carried out on a non-profit basis. Any advertising revenues generated are used to recover and/or defray operational costs. We are a news aggregator and original content website. All information is available free for educational and research purposes. SHELL TACIT ENDORSEMENT: WHAT A WELL INFORMED SHELL OFFICIAL SAID ABOUT US:
"John and Alfred Donovan well known in UK/Hague. They perceive Shell played them and so have made it their mission to embarrass,belittle and criticize Shell, which they do quite well. Their website, royaldutchshellplc.com is an excellent source of group news and comment and I recommend it far above what our own group internal comms puts out."
WARNING TO SHELL EMPLOYEES: Shell Global Affairs Security "CAS") is spying on Shell employees globally trying to trace who is visiting, posting, or leaking information to this website from Shell premises. Threats, including death threats, have allegedly been made against conscience driven Shell whistleblowers supplying us with information. The worlds biggest leak of employee details as part of a claimed corporate revolution by 116 Shell employees, suggest the espionage operation, threats and draconian litigation have not been entirely successful in cutting off the supply of information to this website. The insider leaks had already cost Shell billions on the Sakhalin Energy project and the loss of SEIC Deputy Chairman, David Greer. We publish our own carefully researched articles about Shell e.g. "How Royal Dutch Shell saved Hitler and the Nazi Party". MEDIA COVERAGE: Prospect Magazine, The Sunday Times, and The Guardian, have all published major articles about us: "Rise of the Gripe Site";"Two men and a website mount vendetta against Shell' and "92-year-old's website leaves oil giant Shell-shocked”. SHELL PETROL STATION images displayed in the website header panel are licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Information on copyright issues here.
John Donovan can be contacted at [email protected]
SHELL’S $500,000 WEDDING GIFT TO CORRUPT BRUNEI ROYAL FAMILY
EXTRACT FROM ASIAN JOURNAL ARTICLE IN LIST OF LINKS BELOW: "Fireworks will light up the sky for three nights. The local unit of oil giant Royal Dutch Shell has donated 500,000 Brunei dollars (US$292,400; euro 243,700) for the display, and for cultural events to be hosted by popular performers from Malaysia."
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:
THIS IS WHAT IT SAID:
Subject: This could be the most important whistleblower email you have ever received.
Some unfortunate Royal Dutch Shell workers have already lost their lives. More lives are at stake.
My name is Bill Campbell. I am a former Group Auditor of Shell International. I am writing to you on a matter of conscience in an effort to avert the inevitability of another major accident in the North Sea. The consequences could potentially impact on families in many constituencies, including your own.
As Royal Dutch Shell and the Health & Safety Executive would acknowledge, I am an expert on safety matters relating to offshore oil and gas platforms. In 1999, I was appointed by Shell to lead a safety audit on the Brent Bravo platform. The audit revealed a platform management culture that basically gave a higher priority to production than the safety of Shell employees. To our astonishment we discovered that a "Touch F*** All" policy was in place. Worse still, safety records were routinely falsified and repairs bodged.
I personally brought the shocking situation to the attention of senior management including Malcolm Brinded, the then Managing Director of Shell Exploration & Production. I revealed that ESDV leak-off tests were purposely falsified, not once but many times and that Brent Bravo platform management had admitted responsibility for the dangerous practices being followed. In response to my team ringing alarm bells, management pledged to rectify the serious problems which had been uncovered.
When I later complained that the pledges were not being kept, I was removed from my oversight function.
Four years later, a massive gas leak occurred on the platform. Two workers lost their lives. I have no doubt at all that the inaction of the relevant Asset Manager, the General Manager, the Oil Director and Malcolm Brinded, contributed in some part to the unlawful killing of two persons on Brent Bravo in September 2003.
Shell subsequently pleaded guilty to breaches of the HSE regulations and a record-breaking £900,000 fine was imposed. I thought this would bring about a real change in policy to put the emphasis on safety.
Unfortunately I was wrong. Although I supplied the evidence related to 1999, and the fact that there had been a collapse in controls of integrity from 1999 to 2003 on all 16 of Shell's North Sea offshore installations covered in a post fatality integrity review to the HSE for review by the Procurator Fiscal, none of this evidence was presented before the Sheriff at the subsequent Inquiry. The situation is explained in a letter to the Procurator Fiscal and the Sheriff (on 24th February 2007).
Shell management has engaged in spin to try to pretend that it is getting to grips with its safety problem. However, its atrocious safety record - the worst in the North Sea in terms of accidental deaths and absolute number of enforcement actions – tells a different story. This fact has resulted in a number of newspaper articles.
I have had meetings with senior Shell people including its CEO Mr. Jeroen van der Veer. I regret to say that I have found him to be economical with the truth. He prefers to support cover-up and deceit rather than confronting the underlying problems. Brinded is now Executive Director of Shell Exploration & Production. He believes in burying evidence.
My family and friends would probably prefer me to give up on this matter and enjoy my retirement after so many years working for Shell.
However, by writing to every MP in the UK, no one can ever say that I did not do my best to avert an inevitable further major accident event in the North Sea. When it happens (I pray that I am wrong) I will make this warning communication available to the media together with the vast amount of evidence in my possession.
At least my conscience is clear. I have done everything possible to ring the alarm bells about Shell management and its unscrupulous attitude to the safety of its employees.
Yours sincerely
Bill Campbell
ENDS
(Malcolm Brinded and Jeroen van der Veer are no longer with Shell. The Oil Director referred to in the email is Chris Finlayson, who left Shell to become Chief Executive of British Gas before being fired - his photo immediately below)
SIR PHILIP WATTS, THE GROUP CHAIRMAN OF ROYAL DUTCH SHELL GROUP, FORCED TO RESIGN IN 2004
Shell’s reputation was destroyed in 2004 after FIVE consecutive cuts to its hydrocarbon reserves covering 55% of its total reserves. US and UK financial regulators imposed $150 million in fines on Shell for securities fraud. Shell was also rocked by class action lawsuits. Sir Philip Watts
and Walter van de Vijver (whose headcut images appear courtesy of The Wall Street Journal) were among the Shell executives forced to resign. More details at the foot of this column.
MORE DETAILS: The Shell reserves scandal brought about
the end of the Royal Dutch Shell Group in its original form as an Anglo-Dutch partnership.
Shell Transport & Trading Co and Royal Dutch Petroleum were unified into a single Dutch owned company - Royal Dutch Shell Plc.
Sir Philip turned to religion and is now a very wealthy priest after receiving a payoff/pension package from Shell reportedly worth $18.5 million. Walter van de Vijver in contrast was the victim of a sadistic sacking by his Shell senior management backstabbing colleagues.
Displayed below are some of the spectacular promotional campaigns my company Don Marketing created for Shell in the 1980s and 1990s. This was before the series of SIX high court actions we brought against Shell for stealing ideas (4) and for defamation (2) - all settled by Shell. This website is a permanent response by me to the malicious underhand tactics, including treachery, espionage and intimidation, used by Shell during and after the bouts of litigation. More information is printed at the foot of this column.
MORE DETAILS: After a solicitor acting for Shell threatened to make the litigation "drawn out and difficult" with the intention of draining the resources of a financially weaker opponent, my late father (Alfred Donovan) and I decided to mount a wide-ranging campaign as a counter-measure. We jointly founded the Shell Corporate Conscience Pressure Group, which nearly 15% of Shell UK retailers joined. We regularly conducted ethical surveys involving up to 1500 Shell petrol stations. All responses were opened and authenticated by an independent solicitor who supplied Affidavits confirming the results. In whole page announcements in trade magazines (examples above) we challenged Shell to commission and publish the resuits of independent research asking the same questions and offering respondents GUARANTEED anonymity. Shell never took up the invitation. Instead it asked the UK Advertising Standards Authority to investigate our Shell surveys. No problems were found. The head-cut image of Alfred Donovan appears courtesy of The Wall Street Journal.
SHELL CONTROVERSIES
selection of memorable warnings/articles/images associated with the controversial track record of Royal Dutch Shell.
WARNING: DO NOT DISCLOSE YOUR IDEAS TO SHELL GameChanger OR SHELL Ideas360 WITHOUT TAKING EVERY POSSIBLE PRECAUTION. Shell management has ample funds to pay for intellectual property but prefers to steal it from small businesses and in our experience, gives its full backing to dishonest managers willing to do its bidding. We have sued Shell repeatedly in the High Court for the theft of our Intellectual Property. It is doubtful if anyone can match our dire experience in dealing with this ruthless unscrupulous serial poacher of other parties ideas. Expect threats, legal machinations and sinister action from Shell and its spooks if you object to having your ideas stolen.
Some years ago extensive documentary evidence was brought to the attention of Malcolm Brinded above, when he was Chairman of Shell UK, proving beyond any doubt that Shell executives had conspired to rig a tender for a major contract. A number of innocent firms were deliberately lured into signing confidentiality agreements and disclosing Intellectual Property to Shell under false pretences, in a carefully contrived plot. The firm which was awarded the contract never took part in the tender. One objective of the Machiavellian plan was to stop/delay IP trade secrets owned by the participants in the tender from being disclosed to Shell's rivals. This was achieved by outright deception, without paying a cent to the firms involved, who wrongly believed they were participating in an honest tender. Instead of sacking the ring leader, AJL - who had a personal relationship with the firm which miraculously won the race in which it never ran - Shell senior directors, including Brinded, gave AJL their full backing. Some of the Shell executives involved, including for example, Tim Hannagan, still hold high positions inside Shell - in his case, Global Brand and Visual Identity Manager. If Shell does not accept that this is a true, provable account of what happened, then it should sue for libel. How on earth is such predatory conduct compatible with Shell's claimed business principles?