UNITED STATES TRADEMARK LAW

ENTIRE CHAPTER 11

royaldutchshellplc.com is a Royal Dutch Shell gripe site and blog operated by Alfred and John Donovan, who engaged in several marketing campaigns with Shell during the 1980s and early 1990s. The father and son duo believe Shell violated intellectual property agreements and filed several law suits against Shell prior to starting several websites critical of Shell, including royaldutchshellplc.com. The site has been oft quoted in news sources and is known for its activities as an Internet leak and forum for Shell whistleblowers. read more

By John Donovan

Today we publish below a notification letter dated 8 December 2016 sent by a Shell HR VP to all Shell UK pensioners. 

Basically, Shell is intending to scrap the network of 45 Pensioner Liaison Representatives established over 40 years ago, who currently represent 28,000 Shell UK pensioners. Although Shell still rakes in billions of dollars in annual profits, the reason given is cost-cutting arising from the BG takeover and the low price of oil. 

The letter, pdf copy attached, is signed by a Shell HR VP Jonathan Kohn who openly admits that what is proposed is a “significant change”.  read more

LINK TO ARTICLE

JOHN DONOVAN SAR APPLICATION LETTER TO SHELL INTERNATIONAL LIMITED UNDER THE DATA PROTECTION ACT 1998

19 July 2016

Mr. Gary Thomson SI-LSC/K
Shell International Limited
40 Bank Street
London E14 5NR

Dear Mr Thomson

Data Protection Act 1998 – Subject Access Request (SAR)

Thank you for your email dated 19 July 2016.

Please find enclosed completed application forms together with a postal order for £10 made out to Royal Dutch Shell Plc.

I obtained it before finding out that the fee can now instead be paid to a charity.

As you are aware, I operate royaldutchshellplc.com – a website focussed on the activities of Shell. read more

By John Donovan

I published an article earlier today listing a number of settlements that Shell has made in various litigation claims ranging from fraud to complicity in murder. 

Shell’s settlement of my first three High Court claims against the company were all shrouded in secrecy. 

See: “High Court papers unveil ‘secret’ Shell writ losses.” 

The same applied in respect of three further High Court actions, all settled secretly by Shell, including all my legal costs. 

Extract from my most recent ebook “John Donovan, Shell’s nightmare”: read more

New ebook available globally, including: Amazon.com; Amazon.co.uk; Amazon.fr; Amazon.de; Amazon.nl; Amazon.com.au; Amazon.ca; Amazon.es; Amazon.it; Amazon.in

About: John Donovan, Shell’s nightmare

His ebook tells the truly extraordinary story of a series of battles in an epic feud between him and the oil giant Royal Dutch Shell. It all stemmed from the repeated theft of intellectual property by Shell.

Donovan was chairman of a sales promotion agency, Don Marketing, that devised spectacularly successful forecourt promotions for Shell on an international basis. Many involved budgets of several million dollars. A mutually beneficial relationship lasted for over a decade.

This was followed by two decades of acrimony involving six High Court actions, a County Court case and proceedings via the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). read more

By John Donovan

It’s interesting to note that there seem to be parallels between Siemens (mired in the Panama Papers scandal) and Shell.

A few years ago, Siemens was prosecuted for bribery, and some of their senior employees were jailed. It was suspected that some of the funds provided by Siemens for the bribes were kept by the Siemens executives involved, but lack of evidence prevented the executives involved from being prosecuted. 

The amounts involved in the Siemens cases were tiny in comparison with Shell’s OPL 245 payments, but were funnelled through Mossack Fonseca.  read more

Michael Crothers at Shell E&P Ireland Limited

By John Donovan

On 7 November, we published the first news of the firing of Lorraine Mitchelmore, the President and Country Chair of Shell Canada.

The information, which came from a Shell insider source, was posted on our Shell Blog under the alias of “Manny”

The departure of Lorraine Mitchelmore has been confirmed today by the mainstream media, 10 days later.

She claims that she was not sacked, but stepped down to spend more time with her children.  read more

Outspoken articles about Shell

2017

Shell’s litigation in the U.S. courts over misappropriated $1.4bn Nigerian oil: 18 April 2017

Ben van Beurden distracted by a wiretapping incident: 18 April 2017

Neal Katyal, the best justice money can buy: 17 April 2017

The world’s biggest ship originally with a Nazi name, now named Pioneering Spirit: 16 April 2017

Keith Ruddock and the OPL 245 scandal: 16 April 2017

Unsubstantiated allegations against Shell CEO Ben van Beurden: 16 April 2017

Shell’s Nigerian Nightmare Continues: 16 April 2017

Spectacular falling out of ‘Security Professionals’ at the top of Shell: 12 April 2017

How Shell fell out with former FBI Special Agent Crockett Oaks III: 12 April 2017

Can Shell CEO Ben van Beurden Survive OPL 245?: 11 April 2017

OPL 245: Shell admits it knew payments would go to convicted money launderer: 10 April 2017

Key role of Shell Chairman Malcolm Brinded in OPL 245 Scandal: 10 April 2017

OPL 245: I think Shell may be in a spot of bother: 10 April 2017

New leaked emails put Shell at centre of billion dollar bribery scheme…: 10 April 2017

OPL 245 Scandal: Wiretapped phone call between Ben van Beurden and Simon Henry: 9 April 2017

APRIL 2017: TOP U.S. LAW FIRMS BATTLING TO FRUSTRATE ESTHER KIOBEL LITIGATION AGAINST SHELL: 7 April 2017

Shell’s Nigerian Quagmire: 25 March 2017

Benzene exposure risks and the Norwegian Oil and Gas Industry: 23 March 2017

A/S Norske Shell Secret Meeting With Whistleblower : 22 March 2017

Shell’s tacit acknowledgement of a ‘culture of fear’: 20 March 2017

Shell Upstream Director Admits Culture of Fear Among Shell Employees: 20 March 2017

OPL 245: A falling out of thieves: 19 March 2017

Disillusioned Shell Whistleblower Runar Kjoersvik:  17 March 2017

Shell Sinking in OPL 245 Quicksand: 17 March 2017

LEAKED EMAIL FROM SHELL MD TOR ARNESEN ABOUT SHELL SPYING ON ITS OWN EMPLOYEES: 15 March 2017

Web Attack on Whistleblower by Shell Upstream Director: 13 March 2017

Employees Exposed to Benzene Contamination at Shell Nyhamna Gas Plant: 11 March 2017

Shell Multimillionaire CFO Simon Henry Departs Today: 10 March 2017

Shell confirms several countries investigating OPL 245 scandal: 10 March 2017

NEW SHELL MI6 SPY POPS UP IN OPL 245 ARTICLE: 9 March 2017

MI6 Spy Network Inside Shell: 9 March 2017

SHOW TRIAL OF A SHELL NORWAY SAFETY REP: 7 March 2017

Shell Prelude FLNG project relegated to backburner: 6 March 2017

OPL 245 scandal and Shell’s former MI6 spies: 5 March 2017

Informers regime at Shell Nyhamna Gas Plant: 4 March 2017

Kiobel vs Shell discovery doc battle continues in US Courts: 4 March 2017

LEAKED EMAILS SHOW SHELL AND ENI CONSPIRING TO HIDE PAYMENT IN CORRUPT OPL 245 DEAL: 3 March 2017

Financial tremors for Shell/Exxon (NAM) triggered by Dutch earthquakes: 2 March 2017

Shell trying to ignore media firestorm in Norway: 1 March 2017

Shell Nigerian corruption, lunch and lots of iced champagne: 28 Feb 2017

Shell, the oil giant run by unscrupulous hypocrites: 28 Feb 2017

Climate of fear at Shell Nyhamna Gas Plant in Norway: 27 Feb 2017

Dysfunction Crisis and Scandal at Shell Norway: 26 Feb 2017

Oil Resumption in Ogoni: Does Our Society Still Have Any Conscience?: 25 Feb 2017

Fake news naming Shell as an animal testing company?: 23 Feb 2017

Shell’s Role in Irish Police Corruption Scandal: 23 Feb 2017

Simon Henry sells another £1m worth of Shell shares: 17 Feb 2017

Trials and Tribulations of Royal Dutch Shell Plc: 16 Feb 2017

US Legal Battle over 100,000 Shell Internal Docs: 16 Feb 2017

US appeal against order to hand over Shell docs for Dutch case: 14 Feb 2017

Shell Charged With Corruption In OPL 245 Nigerian Oil Deal: 13 Feb 2017

Brexit, Trump, Populism and Royal Dutch Shell Plc: 12 Feb 2017

Which Members of the Royal Dutch Shell Executive Committee Approved the OPL 245 Scam?: 10 Feb 2017

Italian prosecutors seek trial of Shell Foundation Chairman Malcolm Brinded on OPL 245 Corruption Charges: 8 Feb 2017

Royal Dutch Shell CEO: Dividends No Longer No.1 Priority: 8 Feb 2017

€8.5 million Shell slush fund mishandled in Ireland: 5 Feb 2017

Reflecting on the anti-Leigh Day verdict in Shell Nigerian oil spill case: 31 Jan 2017

NIGERIAN AUTHORITIES SEIZE BILLION DOLLAR OIL BLOCK FROM SHELL AND ENI: 27 Jan 2017

Shell Nigerian Litigation: Win in UK. Loss in USA: 26 Jan 2017

A deserved shitstorm of Shell Nigerian litigation: 25 Jan 2017

A poisoned chalice for Shell’s Ceri Powell: 24 Jan 2017

New Boss of Shell Exploration: 23 Jan 2017

Discrepancy in Shell’s Corrib Gas Project financial filings?: 22 Jan 2017

Royal Dutch Shell Plc.com in Chapter 11: 21 Jan 2017

Hakluyt & Company Spying Missions For Shell: 20 Jan 2017

Royal Dutch Shell Motiva Blues: 19 Jan 2017

Royal Dutch Shell Hydrogen News: 18 Jan 2017

Think Twice Before Disclosing An Idea To Shell: 17 Jan 2017

Dramatic Breakup of Shell/Saudi Aramco jv Motiva: 16 Jan 2017

Shell a player in Iranian oil machinations: 16 Jan 2017

Esher Kiobel v Shell article published in Dutch FT: 15 Jan 2015

Resurrection of Kiobel v Royal Dutch Shell litigation: 11 Jan 2017

On 11 Jan 2017 RoyalDutchShellPlc.com will publish Court Orders involving Shell: 11 Jan 2017

Shell Chairman named in $1.3 billion OPL 245 fraud: 7 7 Jan 2017

Financial tremors for Shell and Exxon from Groningen earthquakes: 6 Jan 2017

Royal Dutch Shell hardline attitude to its employees: 5 Jan 2017

Royal Dutch Shell PLC saddled with a mountain of debt: 3 Jan 2017

OPL 245: Shell and Eni executives set to be arraigned: 1 Jan 2017

2016

Dan Etete turns on his accomplices Eni and Shell: 30 Dec 2016

Alarm Bells – Shell Pearl GTL gasifiers crippled?: 28 Dec 2016

Shell’s complicity in human rights abuses in the Niger Delta: 27 Dec 2016

ENI AND SHELL TO BE PROSECUTED OVER OPL 245 $1.1 BILLION CORRUPTION SCANDAL: 24 Dec 2016

A devastating blow for Shell in U.S. Federal Court: 23 Dec 2016

Explosive allegations around Shell and Eni’s OPL 245 deal: 23 Dec 2016

Obama’s April Fool’s Joke Approving Shell Arctic Drilling: 22 Dec 2016

RoyalDutchShellGroup.com for Shell Breaking News:21 Dec 2016

THE OPL 245 SCANDAL INVOLVING SHELL: 21 Dec 2016

Corruption of Police by Shell: 16 Dec 2016

Shell cost-cutting plan will undermine the welfare of its pensioners: 12 Dec 2016

Shell Canada President Michael Crothers says Canada should stick to its values: 29 Nov 2016

Pleased to assist Leigh Day in Suing Shell says John Donovan: 22 Nov 2016

21st Anniversary Commemoration of Ogoni Martyrs: 12 Nov 2016

LIVING IN TRUMPWORLD: 11 Nov 2016

The Uncensored History of the Shell Brent Oil and Gas Field: 9 Nov 2016

Award for deadly Corrib Gas Project: 8 Nov 2016

Irish Police, Shell, Corruption and Alcohol: 7 Nov 2016

No credibility in Shell Peak Oil Forecasts, says John Donovan: 3 Nov 2016

Hearing on Royal Dutch Shell: Committee Room 1, House of Commons Wednesday 2 November 2016: 1 Nov 2016

Lament for Royal Dutch Shell: 14 Oct 2016

CORRUPT IRISH POLICE FORCE: THE GARDA: 10 Oct 2016

Australian Government unconvinced about FLNG safety claims: 28 Sept 2016 read more

English translation below of the text shown on the centre section of the above German road map published by Shell in Nazi Germany after Hitler came to power in January 1933. Shell boasted about its contribution to the German economy stretching back to 1924. We assume the map provided directions to the Polish border.

In the years approaching WW2, the ardent Nazi, Sir Henri Deterding, was in control at Shell along with likeminded Group Managing Directors (two of whom subsequently became Director Generals of Shell), all willing to get into bed with the Nazis. read more

Chief Financial Officer Simon Henry sold 20,000 shares of Royal Dutch Shell Plc stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th.

The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 2,117 ($33.04), for a total transaction of £423,400 ($660,736.58).

Simon knows more than we do about Shell’s ill-fated 2015 Arctic Drilling campaign.  

The cost thus far is north of $6 billion, without a thimble full of oil to show for it. 

With further mishaps, growing global opposition and time fast running out for the 2015 drilling season, he will probably soon flog some more shares, before ordinary investors start taking flight. 

SOURCE

RELATED read more

Aramco Shell .com

By John Donovan

I own and operate many Shell related domain names including, for example, RoyalDutchShellPlc.com and RoyalDutchShellGroup.com, both of which Shell International unsuccessfully attempted to seize 10 years ago in proceedings via The World Intellectual Property Organisation.

Depending on reaction to this article, I may put one of my domain names – aramcoshell.com up for sale, probably by auction.

It is potentially one of the most valuable domain names in the world.

Here is my logic for such an assertion:  read more

By John Donovan

Royal Dutch Shell CEO Ben van Beurden is said to have lambasted fossil fuel critics at the Shell AGM yesterday, accusing them of ignoring reality.

Two days earlier, Terry Macalister of The Guardian, who has always been scrupulously fair in his comments and reporting in relation to Shell, seemed to suggest that it is Mr Van Beurden who is having a problem in relation to the reality of climate change. 

Extract from his excellent article “The real story behind Shell’s climate change rhetoric”:  read more

By John Donovan

Interesting to read the allegations that the Sultan of Oman’s intelligence services are spying on Shell.

More specifically, the local operations of Shell involving the JV company, Petroleum Development Oman (PDO).

This information is unsurprising given the content of leaked secret cables from the US Embassy in Muscat published by WikiLeaks in December 2010, suggesting a degree of hostility or unease towards Shell. 

The Sultan was at that time considering taking gas fields away from PDO  (34% owned by Shell) and awarding them to BG Group, or BP. 

The growing hostility towards Shell from within PDO Oman was the subject of an email I sent in 2011 to Mr Michiel Brandjes, the Company Secretary of Royal Dutch Shell Plc.  read more

Disclaimer: We encourage a diversity of opinion and comment. The opinions/information expressed/provided by “Washington Observer” in this article are not necessarily endorsed or condoned by this website. For legal reasons we have removed the name of a well known U.S. company that was identified in the article. Shell did not take up our invitation to comment on the content of a related article published by us in 2010 (see below).

At that time, following our email correspondence with a high level U.S. intelligence source, the source was authorized by U.S. Dept. of Defense government attorneys to confirm to us that an investigation directed at Shell in the USA had been initiated by the US Department of the Navy, Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS). The whole strange affair may apparently still be rumbling on, perhaps towards a conclusion that will make any Shell return to the Arctic even less likely.
read more

The problem is when the corruption stems from the boardroom as witnessed by the lead up to the Shell reserves crisis and the protracted cover-up of the Shell Touch F*** All scandal, all is lost.  You only have to look at recent history of how organisations fail due to internal corruption of essential controls by the men in suits in the Boardroom.  Enron, the banking system on both sides of the pond, the current crisis in the NHS are just a few examples. 

COMMENT BY BILL CAMPBELL, RETIRED HSE GROUP AUDITOR, SHELL INTERNATIONAL

The myth of governance

Many pages exist explaining the need for the Shell organisation to have effective governance over its worldwide operations if it hopes to meet its stated objectives across the business.  The governance process is owned by the Board, executive and non executive.  By having essential management controls in place is the fundamental safeguard to meeting objectives including compliance with the applicable laws in the regions in which Shell operate.

The problem is when the corruption stems from the boardroom as witnessed by the lead up to the Shell reserves crisis and the protracted cover-up of the Shell Touch F*** All scandal, all is lost.  You only have to look at recent history of how organisations fail due to internal corruption of essential controls by the men in suits in the Boardroom.  Enron, the banking system on both sides of the pond, the current crisis in the NHS are just a few examples.   read more

By John Donovan

On Friday we published an article revealing Shell internal email correspondence, which provided proof that three weeks after the 9/11 terrorist attack on the USA, Shell executives were considering how Shell could exploit the horrific event for commercial reasons.

As can be seen from the correspondence, the objective was to “buy us a bit of time” in dealing with “production growth” … and “reserves replacement…” Both are key factors in assessing the value of an oil company. Shell was increasingly vulnerable to criticism on both issues.
read more

SHELL ARCTIC MELTDOWN: What a f****** mess Shell have got themselves into…

COMMENT RECEIVED FROM A SHELL SENIOR MANAGEMENT RETIREE

Just read that Shell broke some air quality rules from the EPA. There must be a whole team coordinating all the replies to the press and authorities and making sure they all say the same thing. I can only say: what a f****** mess they have got themselves in. The mess there in Alaska is worse than one can imagine and in my view a direct result of incompetence and penny pinching.

Experts claiming reputational damage many times greater than other damage…

This is what happens if you remove skills and replace those with processes and boxes that must get ticked off. Brinded was a great believer in process, he thought that the rest were too stupid to think for themselves.

Related article by Loren Steffy published Jan 11 by The Houston Chronicle

Shell had a lot riding on Arctic’s rigs snapped tow lines

For years, Shell Oil Co. claimed that a byzantine regulatory process was impeding its progress in the Arctic. Now, if it gets frozen out of the region, it has no one to blame but itself.

The company had a lot riding on the tow ropes pulling its conical drilling rig across the stormy seas near the Alaskan coast on New Year’s Eve. Shell itself had seven years and almost $5 billion invested in the project, and as the first company allowed to drill in Arctic waters, it carried the burden of not botching the effort for other companies also awaiting permits. read more

News reports from long ago are emerging on the Internet as newspapers create digital searchable online archives. This is a disastrous development for  companies such as Royal Dutch Shell that have been around for a long time and have a toxic history to hide.

By John Donovan

News reports from long ago are emerging on the Internet as newspapers create digital searchable online archives. This is a disastrous development for  companies such as Royal Dutch Shell that have been around for a long time and have a toxic history to hide.

An article published on 3 April 1933 by the Border Cities Star, a Canadian daily newspaper, reported allegations made in Pravda, the official political publication of the Soviet Communist Party in Russia. They accused Sir Henri Deterding, the tyrannical head of Royal Dutch Shell, of funding Hitler and described the Nazis as “obedient agents of their benefactors,” claiming: “Deterding orders-Hitler acts.” read more

Just what is needed in pristine Arctic waters: An accident prone Drilling Company employed by a reckless greedy oil giant with a notorious “Touch F*** All” offshore safety culture and a track record of unconscionable, untreated environmental devastation e.g. Nigeria.

By John Donovan

Last month the Noble Discoverer drilling ship involved in Shell’s hapless inaugural season of Arctic oil exploration caught fire in Dutch Harbor, an international port in Alaska. This followed an earlier mishap in July when it slipped its anchor in Dutch Harbor and appeared to have gone aground, though this was denied by Shell despite the visual evidence above to the contrary. 

Now an oil rig at a ship yard in Singapore – the Nobel Regina Allen – also owned by Noble Drilling has partly collapsed, injuring 89 people. See photographs below. read more

By John Donovan

Shell has for many years supposedly operated within an ethical code which, according to its current shell.com webpage on the subject, was first published in 1976.

This does not tally with the relevant pages in “A HISTORY OF ROYAL DUTCH SHELL, Volume 3,” about the history of the code – known in the 1990’s as the Shell Statement of General Business Principles.

Apparently they were first drafted in 1962, restated and first published in 1976, made freely available to the public from 1981 and reformulated in 1997, for the first time including human rights. read more

Shell has admitted past discrimination against Jewish employees, which cost at least 20 of them their lives.  It supported racist regimes in Nazi Germany and more recently, Apartheid South Africa.

By John Donovan

Shell employees who have accused Shell of being a racist company will be interested in a comparison set out in “A HISTORY OF ROYAL DUTCH SHELL, Volume 3” between Shell’s much trumpeted business principles and those of its main competitor, ExxonMobil, in regard to equal employment opportunity.

Shell has admitted past discrimination against Jewish employees, which cost at least 20 of them their lives. It supported racist regimes in Nazi Germany and more recently, Apartheid South Africa. read more

By John Donovan

In 1987, Shell Oil Co implemented a secret 265 page plan devised by a Washington based firm, Pagan International.

The devious plan was designed to undermine support for critics of Shell’s policy of propping up the despised racist apartheid regime in South Africa, just as Shell and its Nazi leader, Sir Henri Deterding,  propped up Nazi Germany before WW2. 

The objective of Shell’s secret campaign was to neutralize boycott groups, including church and civil rights groups, unions and academics. read more

Within 48 hours, subject to legal intervention by Shell, we will publish an article about how Royal Dutch Shell propped up and profited from the repressive apartheid regime in South Africa.

By John Donovan

Update Monday 26 November: Within 48 hours, subject to legal intervention by Shell, we will publish an article about how Royal Dutch Shell propped up and profited from the repressive apartheid regime in South Africa. It is another astonishing story of informers, spying, deception, and misinformation directed by Shell at parties who opposed its support for the racist regime, once led by B. J. Vorster. Shell’s disgraceful conduct led to The Church of England accusing the company of dishonesty and outright deception. read more

THIS IS NOT A SPOOF, BUT A GENUINE LEAKED MOTIVATIONAL MESSAGE FROM SHELL CEO PETER VOSER, DESCRIBED BY ONE RECIPIENT AS “BULLSHIT OF OLYMPIC PROPORTIONS”

By John Donovan

Printed below is a motivational message sent to Shell staff yesterday by Royal Dutch Shell CEO, Peter Voser.

It was supplied by a thoroughly disillusioned Shell insider along with these forthright comments from someone who has seen it all before at Shell:

John

Shell appears to be again in the hands of consultants who are laughing their balls off. I imagine these consultants are the sons of the ones that made the Shell management pass marbles and other spheres or forced them to perform kindergarten games. Nearly all of them participated since standing up and telling what everyone knew ‘This is bullshit, I am going home’ was a step too far for most! read more

COMMENT FROM A FORMER SHELL EMPLOYEE ON THE KIOBEL v SHELL CASE

I would like to remind your readers that the United States held its own version of the Nuremberg trials in the American Zone of what was once West Germany. The trials held at Nuremberg ended in 1946 but the US decided to continue prosecuting those whom were deemed by the US government to be (suspected) ‘war criminals’. The trials in the US Zone ended in 1949. (see the attached link w/ PDF file). None of the other major powers conducted their own versions of the Nuremberg trials.

These articles have a very interesting discussion of the history of the Nuremberg trials and the establishment of recognized international legal standards for ‘crimes against humanity’, etc. read more

Extract from “Gripe Sites: Sue or Stew”

By William G. Pecau

Gripe sites can be more than forums for criticism. Because some are run by or receive contributions from former employees or anonymous current dissatisfied employees, some gripe sites have access to and post non- public information about a company or its employees. Some of this information is false, some of it might be embarrassing, and some of it might be very harmful to a company.

One gripe site www.royaldutchshellplc. com, run by a former employee of Shell, credits itself with costing Shell billions of dollars. It claims to have disclosed environmental violations by a joint venture in Russia’s Sakhalin Islands that allowed Vladimir Putin’s government significant concessions from the Shell joint venture. read more

Article by a Guest Author, a Regular Contributor

We all know that Shell cannot possibly deal with a significant release of oil from any of the well it will (may) be drilling in the Arctic this summer. That is now well known and a given, no matter what Shell claims. Even the Coast Guard admits it could not deal with such a situation.

In spite of this problem Shell has gotten virtually all the permits it needs to go ahead and drill this summer, i.e., the US government has approved Shell’s woefully inadequate plan and means of dealing with any sort of significant oil spill, should one occur. The US Government knows a major ‘event’ cannot be dealt with, by either Shell or the Coast Guard. read more

COLLABORATING WITH THE DONOVANS

Despite all of the acrimony over the years, we are pleased to receive confirmation in authentic Shell Internal emails dated 18 Jan 2012 that we remain Shell’s “favourite “Royal Dutch Shell plc website.”

What is less amusing is that one Shell member of staff was concerned about the prospect of being accused of “collaborating with the Donovans!!” A hanging offense.

This fear arose because he had visited our website to check if we had picked up and posted a Guardian article – “Shell to shut its main UK research base and transfer its work overseas” – reporting that Shell staff at Thornton were “seething” about Shell’s plans. Thornton appears to be a very sensitive subject for Shell. The names of the sender and recipients have been removed. read more

Translation of an article published in an April 2012 edition of the German magazine: ECOreporter

CLICK ON EACH IMAGE TO ENLARGE

Text in Nigeria Oil Spill Photo: The oil industry in Nigeria is the cause of ecological environmental problems

Article by Juergen Roettger.

April Fool

Bad Publicity plus British Humour –  puts Shell on the defensive

An early retired pensioner takes on the Shell Group : an unequal duel, one might think? Very likely. Because, the Shell Group has no chance against him. 

John Donovan is rapping the fingers of the Shell International Oil Multinational. For about ten years now, the early retired pensioner from the East English town of Colchester has been running a website: www.royaldutchshellplc.com. The Shell Group spends millions on image-polishing publicity, and Donovan only 150 Dollars for his internet website.  Donovan has published around 30,000 articles highlighting shortcomings of the British-Dutch Group. New reports are being added daily. Donovan gains support from a network of insiders who provide him with internal information and secret documentation, so that these can be made public. read more

It seems to me slightly over-the-top for the Sakhalin Energy source to compare the Russian Federation Government dealings with the Donovans to “another mistake similar to signing The Non-Aggression Pact between the USSR and Germany of 1939…”

By John Donovan

Definition of a “loose cannon” – An unpredictable or uncontrolled person who is likely to cause unintentional damage.

Over the last few days I have received many emails from a disgruntled translator, apparently a lady, who has been involved for some years in the Sakhalin 1 and 2 oil and gas projects.

The number, frequency and length of the emails has increased. An email received yesterday was several A4 pages in length. Eight more emails were received last night.

The most recent emails are all addressed to me and copied to many people in Sakhalin Energy and the ExxonMobil Sakhalin project. read more

By John Donovan

Stumbled across this interesting correspondence conducted publicly via the letters page of the Financial Times several years ago between Sir Mark Moody-Stuart of Shell and Mr Tony Juniper, Executive Director, Friends of the Earth, London. As can be seen, Sir Mark scored a spectacular own goal. Got his facts wrong.

FROM OUR JUNE 2005 SHELL NEWS ARCHIVE

Shell Director Sir Mark Moody-Stuart & Tony Juniper, Executive Director, Friends of the Earth, exchange fire  via the letters page of the Financial Times

Financial Times: Enjoy a free trip and get to ask Shell a question: By Sir Mark Moody-Stuart

Thursday 30 June 2005

By Mark Moody-Stuart

From Sir Mark Moody-Stuart.

Sir, Attending my last annual meeting of Shell as a director, I was interested to note that almost half of the 20 or so questions asked came from individuals from areas in the neighbourhood of Shell operations in Sakhalin, Brazil, Nigeria, the Philippines and the US. According to Craig Bennett of Friends of the Earth (FoE), who summed up their concerns, these people had been brought to England by FoE to reflect locally held views. read more

FROM AN OUTSPOKEN CRITIC OF ROYAL DUTCH SHELL

On Shell’s website you will find the statement:

Shell is a global group of energy and petrochemicals companies. With around 90,000 employees in more than 80 countries and territories, Shell helps to meet the world’s growing demand for energy in economically, environmentally and socially responsible ways.

Why do I find this statement hard to swallow and take at face value ???  What utter CRAP.

Let’s get real people. Shell (and the oil industry in general) is in the business of natural resource EXPLOITATION. The oil industry is a ‘rape, ruin, and run’ industry. And don’t try to tell me otherwise. I have worked in it for over 25 years, in the US and many countries overseas. read more

By John Donovan

We have already published an article containing a leaked email purportedly sent on 14 June 2012 by disgruntled Shell Exploration & Production Libya staff to senior Shell managers. Shell claims that it is withdrawing from Libya because of a deteriorating security situation. It self-evidently prefers to do business with dictators (a policy stretching back to Hitler).

The disgruntled employees – 17 in total, are all members of Shell’s security staff in Libya.

We now have a Statement of Complaint signed by all 17, detailing serious allegations against Salah Alshaafi, the chief of the Shell Security team. read more

EMAIL RECEIVED FROM MAURA HARRINGTON SPOKESPERSON OF “SHELL TO SEA” CAMPAIGN: SHELL CORRIB GAS PROJECT IN IRELAND ON SHAKY GROUND

Dear John,

Further interesting developments on the west coast!

This morning registered a 4.0 magnitude earthquake off Belmullet. This occurred in the general area of the Corrib Field and at a depth too close to the reservoir for any complacency.

Shell had hydrotested the offshore pipeline over the weekend and, while I’m by no means saying that Shell is the cause of the earthquake it is not unreasonable to wonder what the effect of this has on ALL their offshore Corrib installations.

Below link to Irish Times article where ‘Shell’s pet Rabbitte’ feels the need to say there is ‘no link’ with Corrib! read more

The court will fine Shell 100,000 pesos (US$28,000) for each day it falls behind in the clean-up operation, the paper reported.

Protests about the biggest fresh water oil spill in history

By John Donovan

Printed below is a news report about the largest ever oil spill in fresh water. Shell was responsible for the spill, which occurred in the River Plate on January 15, 1999, polluting drinking water and local wildlife.

The Municipality of Magdalena and some groups of inhabitants of the small town with a population of around 8,000 initiated claims against Shell (owner of the oil and the ship responsible for the spill). All these years later some of the resultant litigation is still in progress. Many inhabitants of Magdalena were under age at the time of the oil spill and are still waiting for justice to decide on their claim. read more

Full episode 02.05.12 | 22:30 – 23:00 UTC

European Journal – The Magazine from Brussels

European Journal is a 30 minute magazine on DW that delivers the inside take – reports on important political, economic and cultural developments in the EU with a strong focus on the European integration process. European Journal features issues that move Europeans and shows Europeans on the move.

Britain: Shell’s Enemy No. 1

John Donovan is a thorn in the side of the Shell oil group. For the past ten years, he has been posting about environmental abuses and other shortcomings at the global oil concern.

John Donovan’s campaign against Shell has already cost the company dearly. He supplied the Russian government with information about lax safety standards at the Sakhalin II oil-drilling project. Moscow took advantage of the revelations to divest Shell of its majority stake in the project in favor of the Russian oil company Gazprom. The source of Donovan’s vendetta against Shell has its roots in a personal dispute: Donovan was involved in a number of marketing campaigns with Shell, and later accused the company of violating intellectual property agreements. After Donovan’s own company went bankrupt, he became one of the biggest critics of the Shell group. read more

COMMENT FROM A FORMER SHELL EMPLOYEE (Name and contact information supplied).

I was reading your blog today about Shell’s annual meeting and the dissatisfaction being expressed by shareholders. One shareholder I think summed up the attitude of most shareholders in general, and employees in particular (who are also shareholders in Shell through the various stock purchase plans). The comment about the conduct of corporate management was – ‘… I don’t want to be ashamed (of the way the company was conducting itself) ….’.

Well, I think that shareholders have a good deal to be ashamed of, whether it is the (mis)conduct of the company in Nigeria (oil exploitation), corporate (mis)conduct in the States and South America (pesticide production and pollution), corporate (mis)conduct with regard to the IP rights of partners, contractors, etc., and the defrauding of investors, etc., through the cooking of the ‘reserve books’, and so on. Shareholders should even be ashamed of the company’s past affiliation with the Nazis and Shell’s refusal to come clean on that matter. read more

Shell is notorious for its predatory appetite for the intellectual property of other organizations, its business partners, contractors, etc. Industrial espionage is a way of life at Shell.

COMMENT BY A FORMER SHELL OIL COMPANY ENGINEER

Another alleged case of IP theft hits Royal Dutch Shell

I have a short comment about the company you clearly enjoy tormenting.

Over the years RDS managers (not all, but a large percentage) have made it abundantly clear what type of people they are.

For years Shell senior management lied to the company’s shareholders, investors, regulators, etc., about their reserve balance sheet. That legacy of misconduct through the ranks of Shell management over a period of decades culminated in the 2004 reserves scandal. read more

By John Donovan

Whilst trawling through cases filed against Shell on the U.S. Court system electronic records, I came across a claim filed on 17 April 2012.

It is yet another case alleging that Shell has misappropriated intellectual property.

Our own problems with Shell arose from the serial theft of ideas we disclosed to the company in strictest confidence. We had to sue four times over a period of several years. Shell eventually settled all of our claims, but only after we were besieged by unethical activity designed to intimidate our witnesses and frighten us into abandoning the litigation. read more

by LloydBricks May 17, 2012

One consequence of global anger about widespread banking fraud, corruption, and environmental devastation as of late has been the creation of the online ‘gripe site’ such as those by author, blogger and self-proclaimed ‘intelligence adviser’ Robert Eringer, along with the more popular site of Royal Dutch Shell. These are websites dedicated to exposing what their writers see as unfair, illegal or corrupt behaviour by individuals or companies.

Comparing the sites, Robert Eringer’s primary website could not be more different from royaldutchshellplc.com—one of the most well known of such sites. The numerous websites of Robert Eringer are a clear piece of self- promotion; alongside the half-baked conspiracy theories and wild claims of Eringer’s own personal involvement with powerful people are links to purchase his books. These include memoirs, spy thrillers and non-fiction books. All appear to have been self-published and not very well-received. read more

FROM OUR ARCHIVES

By John Donovan

In May 2005, Royal Dutch Shell was in the middle of the maelstrom arising from the reserves scandal. Shell had defrauded many of its own shareholders as a result of filing false information with the US Securities & Exchange Commission. The Sunday Telegraph article printed below provides an insight into the subsequent legal “onslaught”.

After being approached by the U.S. lawyers, Bernstein Liebhard & Lifshitz, acting for the lead plaintiffs, I supplied Shell insider evidence and contact with Shell whistleblowers, including Dr John Huong, a Shell production geologist.  read more

Hi John,

We love the terrific work you do with your site royaldutchshellplc.com. With its vast amount of articles it is a terrific news archive on anything regarding Shell. I especially read one of your latest posts, titled Shell’s Outrage, with great interest. Also heard about the strategy you used to have, paying or asking homeless people to hand out flyers in front of Shell’s head office when you guys couldn’t. That last one made me smile, very smart.

On May 1 we started the campaign http://worsethanbad.org with Milieudefensie (Dutch non-profit organisation fighting for the environment). A campaign to put more pressure on Shell, so it will take its responsibility for the environmental disaster in Nigeria serious. One of the ideas to draw more attention to our campaign, is this video we made featuring Shell´s CEO Peter Voser (http://www.youtube.com/all_comments?v=mYjjlKgQRLQ). We´re working hard to have this campaign being picked up by lots of people via traditional and social media. read more

By John Donovan

The article printed below is from our archives. It is about gripe web sites such as this one and contains a warning by Guy Martin, of the law firm Carter-Ruck concerning “potentially disastrous legal consequences for making untrue allegations which are defamatory of companies or individuals…” 

It is therefore a testimony to our caution and good judgement that after nearly two decades of operating websites focused on Royal Dutch Shell, the evil oil giant and its in-house army of 600 litigators have self-evidently never had grounds to sue us for defamation. read more

Lawyers are not business people, however large a lawyer’s experience may be, in the conduct of business he is absolutely useless. A lawyer placed at the head of a concern would soon bring the business to rack and ruin.

By John Donovan

The Lawyer reports today that “Royal Dutch Shell has launched a new global disputes group to handle all of its litigation and arbitration, appointing Fulbright & Jaworski partner Richard Hill as the group’s associate general counsel.”

Shell kicks off global litigation group with Fulbright hire

It says that with his appointment, Shell will have 108 lawyers worldwide as part of a 600 strong in-house legal department.

Enough to cover multiple claims for IP theft, wrongful dismissal, human rights abuse, avoidable deaths of Shell employees, pollution claims, corruption allegations, and other unsavory litigation arising from Shell’s failure to abide with its own core business principles. read more

FROM “OUTSPOKEN” – A FORMER SHELL OIL EMPLOYEE

John,

I see you now have two mindless friends, ‘USCitizen’ and ‘LondonLad’ staunchly defending Royal Dutch Shell. Hmmm. It would appear to me that the propaganda guys on both sides of the pond appear to have gotten into the act. I seriously doubt these people really exist. I wonder if they coordinate their responses ?

I remember a line from a movie, ‘A Few Good Men’, I believe, that went something like : ‘You want the truth?! You really want the truth?!!…… Well, you can’t handle the truth.!!’ In the movie the truth turned out to be rather ‘dirty and ugly’. read more

Photograph of Shell’s Geelong refinery in Australia

By John Donovan

The sordid side of Shell and its inability to follow its own core values at the very top of its management

Shell investigates alleged IP theft at Geelong Refinery

Alleged IP theft from employee of Shell Geelong Refinery

Stirring up a Hornets’ Nest at Shell’s Geelong Refinery

Hi John,          

It was good to see Diana’s friend from the old Mobil refinery reinforce the fact that she is a nice person, as well as being clever.

Our refinery production manager Mr Guy Hackwell has been visiting lunch rooms around the refinery removing copies of the original email, referring to Shells reliability Manager, Mr Rod Mayes , as “a blood sucker who realized the potential and ran off and presented this work to Vice President Downstream Australia, Mr Andrew Smith.” read more

According to an insider source, the information that appeared on this website regarding alleged Intellectual Property theft has stirred up a hornet’s nest at Shell’s Geelong Refinery. It would also appear that an investigation is under way to find the person responsible for sending it to me, which has the objective of subjecting that person to Disciplinary Action.

By John Donovan

I have permission from the sender, Mr Warwick Williams, to publish an email he sent to me concerning the alleged theft by Shell of intellectual property owned by an employee at Geelong Refinery in Australia, Diana Newman. read more

Copy of an email sent by John Donovan to every UK MP: 25 APRIL 2012

ROYAL DUTCH SHELL SENIOR MANAGEMENT HAS HAD ADVANCE SIGHT OF THIS EMAIL AND THEREFORE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SEEK AN INJUNCTION IF ANYTHING STATED IS UNTRUE

This issue transcends all geographical (and constituency) boundaries.

In September 2011, The Independent published an article under the headline: “Oil exploration under Arctic ice could cause ‘uncontrollable’ natural disaster.  One of the world’s leading polar scientists has warned: “If there is serious oil spill under ice in the Arctic it will be very hard, if not impossible to stop it becoming an environmental catastrophe…”

What should be given the greatest weight in deciding if Shell can be trusted to drill in the Arctic Ocean – Shell’s promises about being able to react quickly and effectively to any incident/disaster arising from its pioneer Arctic drilling commencing in July, or its horrendous track record of environmental pollution on an epic scale and deceiving host governments? read more

The plant was built in 1977 by Shell… Dozens of former employees of the plant have been diagnosed with prostate, thyroid and other types of cancer, circulatory, liver and intestinal illnesses, as well as infertility and sexual impotence, the statement added.

By John Donovan

We have received emails seeking our help and advice from ATESQ (*Exposed Chemical Substances Workers Association), all former workers at Shell/Basf Chemicals in Paulinia, Brasil, who won a court case against against both multinationals.

In August 2010 the two companies were ordered to pay a total of 490 million euros in fines and damages for the workers exposure to toxic substances at a Sao Paulo factory.

Extracts from the emails:

We have gained a lawsuit that says Shell and Basf must pay for our medical treatments and pay for the damages they caused to us, but so far nothing has been done. Shell/Basf appealed to a second degree court. They lost at the second degree court and appealed to the upper-federal court, which they lost and right now they have appealed to request a reduction on their monetary penalty. read more

John Donovan at the Shell Centre, 4 April 2012

Professional translation (by OneHourTranslation) of the German narration in the ARD TV Europa Magazine documentary feature: Great Britain: A lone fighter against Shell. Broadcast Saturday 21 April 2012.

Great Britain: A lone fighter against Shell

Next to the London Eye, the Shell Centre stands tall. Its enemy stands at the door.

“You might find that interesting,” says John Donovan. He distributes flyers to inform people about the oil company’s drilling projects.

“Shell destroys communities,” is what the banner says. An older gentleman and a handful of like-minded people are aggravating one of the world’s largest oil giants. read more