Posted by Jui Kate: 12-Oct-2018

The British-Dutch oil company Royal Dutch Shell has reportedly announced its plans to invest in the North Sea to construct a gas field 149 miles east of Aberdeen. As per trusted sources, the energy giant is making a slew of new investments in the basin after selling off about EUR 2.4 billion worth of North Sea fields and assets in early 2017.

Reportedly, Shell decided to invest in the Arran field following investments in revamping the Fram field in the Central North Sea, the Penguins field in the northern North Sea, and the Alligin field West of Shetland. According to a press release by Shell, the Arran field is likely to produce nearly 100 million cubic feet of gas and 4,000 barrels of condensate each day which is equivalent to 21,000 barrels of oil. read more

In spite of everything hurled by the North Sea and global market conditions across half a century, and despite predictions to the contrary, Shell remains a big player on the UK Continental Shelf.

Energy Voice interviewed Shell UK upstream vice president Steve Phimister aboard the Shearwater platform.

Written by Jeremy Cresswell – 15/08/2018 6:00 am

A characteristic throughout has been a quest to lead.

Driving Shell forward is VP Upstream President Steve Phimister who, by coincidence, was born the same year as Shell’s UKCS odyssey began 50 years ago.

The super-major has lived through boom times followed by harsh periods when commodity prices were in the basement and, from the late 1990s, speculation grew as to whether such companies had a future in the North Sea. read more

By Collin Eaton: Updated 9:18 am, Monday, January 15, 2018

Royal Dutch Shell plans to build its first major oil-production vessel in the northern U.K. North Sea in almost three decades, in an effort to redevelop the Penguins oil and gas field, the company said Monday.

Shell believes the floating production, storage and offloading vessel will pump 45,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day from the Penguins field at its peak, and that it could break even on its investment even if oil prices slide below $40 a barrel. read more

Ron Rousso: JAN 15, 2018

LONDON (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell gave the green light on Monday for an expansion of the Penguins oil and gas field in the UK North Sea, its first major new project in the ageing basin in six years.

Shell said the development, which includes the construction of a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, reaffirmed the Anglo-Dutch company’s commitment to the region after it sold around half of its assets there last year.

“Penguins demonstrates the importance of Shell’s North Sea assets to the company’s upstream portfolio,” said Andy Brown, director of Shell’s oil and gas production, known as upstream. read more

By MarEx  18 December 2017

Shell has launched an investigation after a lifeboat accidentally “descended” from the aging Brent Alpha platform during maintenance.

A Shell spokesperson said that on Saturday morning, a mechanical failure occurred during routine maintenance, “allowing [the lifeboat] to descend into the sea.” The BBC reports that the lifeboat davit’s clutch slipped during work on the boat. No injuries were reported, and the boat was recovered the following day. read more

Fun Trading: 18 Dec 2017

Summary

• Shell announced that production from the Shearwater and Nelson platforms in the central North Sea had been suspended due to Forties pipeline shutdown.
• Forties pipeline is a vital artery of the North Sea production. Production loss is estimated at about 400K Boep/d which is significant and may boost oil prices for weeks.
• This situation could be considered as a net positive for Shell and other oil majors.

Investment Thesis:

Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) (RDS.B), BP P.l.c (BP), and Exxon Mobil (XOM) are the most reliable long-term oil companies and should be part of your main oil portfolio. However, this special status comes with the shareholders’ obligation to follow tightly what is going on with the company on the day-to-day news which may eventually change the future outlook — in this case with a potential production cut. This is exactly what I intend to discuss today. read more

Written by Mark Lammey – 06/12/2017 6:00 am

Steve Phimister, upstream vice president for the UK and Ireland at Shell, said the company had delivered on its plans for the current year and paid tribute to staff members.

Highlights from the year included the sale of a package of North Sea assets to Chrysaor and the arrival of the Brent Delta platform in Hartlepool for scrapping.

Shell hopes to make a final investment decision (FID) on redeveloping the Penguins area “shortly”.

Mr Phimister said Penguins was on track to be the “first cab out of the rank” next year. read more

Oil giant Shell will not sell off any more North Sea assets.

A senior figure at the company has told BBC Scotland he has no plans to sell resources despite the chancellor announcing measures to make the process easier.

Shell has just completed the sale of a package of assets to the company Chrysaor for $3.8bn.

It included stakes in the Buzzard, Beryl, Elgin-Franklin and Schiehallion fields.

Director of Shell’s Upstream Commercial business, Steve Phimister, said he would now invest in what remains. read more

Written by Alan Shields – 10/11/2017 7:40 am

Opportunities for new North Sea field investment are “beginning to appear on the horizon”, according to Shell UK’s commercial manager Ben Taylor.

The upstream commercial lead for the supermajor’s North Sea operations admitted that there are still many “challenges” facing the industry.

He cited the balancing act of juggling decommissioning older assets with maximising the remaining North Sea reserves as one such test for the sector.

But he said there should be optimism that a change of perception from within industry culture should lead to signs of renewed activity.

Speaking at a business breakfast in Aberdeen, Mr Taylor said: “When you talk across industry there’s an opportunity now for new field investment beginning to appear on the horizon. read more

Written by Alan Shields – 08/11/2017 12:05 pm

Oil major Shell has taken 60 people off the Brent Bravo platform in the North Sea.

The firm said that “poor weather” was impacting delivery of diesel.

This resulted in a partial downmanning as a “precautionary measure”, the operator said.

A spokesperson for Shell UK said: “Shell UK can confirm that 60 personnel from the Brent Bravo platform have returned to shore as a precautionary measure.

“Poor weather has impacted the delivery of diesel and we are working to reinstate supplies as soon as possible, weather permitting.” read more

Shell this morning finalised its $3.8billion North Sea deal with Harbour Energy-backed Chrysaor Holdings.

Written by Rita Brown – 01/11/2017 7:32 am

The package of assets consists of Shell’s interests in Buzzard, Beryl, Bressay, Elgin-Franklin, J-Area, the Greater Armada cluster, Everest, Lomond and Erskine, plus a 10% stake in Schiehallion

The deal includes an initial consideration of $3billion and a payment of up to $600m between 2018-2021 subject to commodity price, with potential further payments of up to $180m for future discoveries.

The transaction was backed by private equity fund EIG Global Energy Partners, through its Harbour Energy joint venture with Asian commodity group Noble. read more

Written by Mark Lammey – 25/10/2017 

Shell is targeting first gas from the field, which lies 136miles east of Aberdeen, in the second quarter of 2020.

The company intends to develop the gas and gas condensate field via a tie-back to the Shearwater platform 20 miles away.

The submission of the plans comes about two months after Shell chief executive Ben van Beurden said the company was committed to the North Sea, despite agreeing to sell a package of assets in the basin to Chrysaor earlier this year. read more

Offshore workers were exposed to the risk of fire and explosion after blunder led to a gas leak on a southern North Sea installation.

Written by Alan Shields – 11/10/2017 12:27 pm

The uncontrolled release took place on the Barque PB, a normally unmanned platform, on July 19.

Around 138kg of flammable hydrocarbon gas was released from pipework connected to the vessel V2000, according to the Health and Safety Executive.

A subsequent probe found that flammable gas had been used to leak test the pipework instead of inert nitrogen gas – which was available.

Failings were found in the arrangements for the effective planning, organising and control for the reinstatement of the pipework. read more

NEWS FROM JULY 2, 2015 RELEVANT TO RECENT EVENTS

Oil giant Shell was today fined over £6,000 after a diesel leak on board the same North Sea platform where two workers died 12 years ago.

Sean McCue, 22, and Keith Moncrieff, 45, lost their lives when they were overcome by gas while working on the energy firm’s Brent Bravo rig in 2003.

The oil company was previously fined nearly one million pounds admitting safety breaches which led to their deaths.

Yesterday Shell UK bosses returned to the court after approximately 13 to 15 tonnes of diesel spilled into the North Sea despite warnings over the transfer system going back over a decade. read more

Upstreamonline.com reports 30 Aug 2017…

Shell has been served with more safety warnings over a gas leak in May at its Brent Charlie facility in the UK northern North Sea, which is only now beginning a gradual restart of production.

A Shell spokesperson told Upstream on Wednesday that the facility commenced a gradual restart at the weekend and is fully up-manned.

Free access to article subject to Upstreamonline.com terms

Shell and BP’s commitment to North Sea oil ‘rock solid’

Majors’ cost reductions have narrowed gap in competitiveness with other parts of world

Written by Alan Shields – 02/08/2017 10:09 am

Royal Dutch Shell has been served a prohibition notice over the potential for “fire and explosion” on the Brent Charlie platform.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said the supermajor had failed to act under the Offshore Prevention of Fire regulations.

The watchdog said the breach related to the possibility of an uncontrolled release of flammable or explosive hydrocarbons from safety critical pipework in the Column Four leg.

The breach was recorded back in May, with the prohibition notice served at the end of the month. read more

One of the brains behind an iconic piece of the North Sea oil and gas landscape will have a last chance to say goodbye before it is dismantled for good.

Written by Stephen Walsh – 22/06/2017 7:29 am

Shell’s Brent Delta platform was a major part of offshore infrastructure for more than 40 years.

But, last month, the top was removed from the waters, leaving its legs behind, and transported to Hartlepool as part of the decommissioning process.

The huge 24,000 tonne topside, which weighs the same as the Empire State Building, is currently being stored in an Able UK’s shipyard, where it is waiting to be taken apart and recycled.

However, Shell gave some of its former employees the chance to bid farewell to the platform, which generated more than £35billion over its four decades. read more

Friday 16 July 2017

The European Commission approved on Friday Royal Dutch Shell’s (RDSa.L) $3.8 billion sale of North Sea oil and gas assets to private equity-backed Chrysaor.

“The Commission concluded that the proposed acquisition would not raise competition concerns, because of its limited impact on the market structure,” the Commission said in a statement.

Shell welcomed the “important milestone” toward the completion of the deal which is expected in the second half of this year. read more

Written by Mark Lammey – 14/06/2017 7:04 am

Shell paid more than $55.6billion (£43.7billion) to governments around the world in 2016, but got a sizeable rebate from the UK Treasury, the oil major revealed today.

The group, which is headquartered in London and the Netherlands, received a tax credit of £111million from the UK government last year primarily as a result of North Sea decommissioning costs.

About £90million worth of UK tax credits were linked to the Brent field and other northern North Sea projects.

Earlier this year, Shell submitted its plans for decommissioning Brent, a process expected to take about a decade.

In May, the Brent Delta topside was delivered to Able UK’s yard in Hartlepool for scrapping. read more

MARK WILLIAMSON: 14 June 2017

ROYAL Dutch Shell has revealed that it was refunded $142.5 million tax in the UK last year, in a development that highlights the scale of the bills the government will face as North Sea fields run dry.

Around $116m of the refund appears to be due to the relief provided to Shell for the costs of decommissioning work completed on the giant Brent field north east of Shetland.

The first of four platforms used on the field was shipped to Hartlepool on a giant vessel earlier this month in a move that marked the end of an era. Brent became one of the first North Sea fields to go into production in 1976. read more

Royal Dutch Shell received a huge UK tax credit due to North Sea decommissioning costs

Courtney Goldsmith: Tuesday 13 June 2017 3:00pm

Royal Dutch Shell paid over $55.6bn (£43.7bn) to 31 governments last year, but in the UK it received a tax credit as a result of decommissioning costs, according to a report.

Shell received a $142.5m tax credit in the UK primarily for decommissioning costs in its North Sea business, according to the oil major’s report on payments to governments where it and its subsidiaries have upstream operations.

The firm paid $8.17bn to the UK government in fees. read more

Emily Gosden, Energy Editor: Monday June 5, 2017

Mr Brown said he had been shocked by some of the inefficiencies Shell found when it reviewed operations worldwide after oil prices fell. Shell’s global operating costs have been cut by 20 per cent, or $10 billion, since 2014. In the Gulf of Mexico, for example, it has cut the number of vessels serving its platforms from 61 to… read more

Written by Mark Lammey – 02/06/2017 6:20 am

A north-east MSP called for “urgent government action” after oil giant Shell said yesterday it was axeing 90 onshore roles in Aberdeen.

Labour’s Lewis Macdonald said it highlighted a need for support to protect jobs and skills in the UK oil and gas industry amid “the ongoing impact of the downturn” caused by a sharp slump in oil prices.

“The failure of other parties to act makes the result of next week’s general election even more important,” he added. read more

Monday 29 May 2017 14.46 BSTLast modified on Monday 29 May 2017 15.35 BST

Conservationists want oil companies and regulators to consider leaving more old rigs in the North Sea rather than removing them, with the savings paid into a fund to protect sealife. After the Brent Spar debacle in 1995 when Shell provoked public outrage with plans to sink an old storage buoy, international regulations were imposed that work on the presumption that operators will remove rigs. Exemptions can be granted but are rare and on limited grounds. read more

By Laura Paterson: 

A GAS LEAK sparked a major evacuation and shut down of a North Sea oil rig.

The gas detection alarm was sounded on Friday morning on Shell’s Brent Charlie platform, 115 miles north-east of Shetland.

The oil giants said all 176 people on board have been accounted for and a total of 31 non-essential workers were being evacuated from the platform as a precaution.

A Shell spokeswoman said: “Following a gas detection alarm, production was shut down and the platform called to muster. The source of the leak has been safely detected and isolated and a full investigation into the cause will be completed. read more

Written by Energy Reporter – 22/05/2017 6:39 am

The alarm was raised on Friday on the operator’s Brent Charlie.

The oil super major was forced to shutdown production after a gas detection alarm was triggered.

A total of 31 personnel were flown off the platform. The crew were largely associated with production, which remains suspended today.

Investigations into the cause of the isolated incident will be carried out for the remainder of the day.

The Brent field, operated by Shell, lies off the north-east coast of Scotland, midway between the Shetland Islands and Norway. It was discovered in 1991. The field’s lifespan was originally estimated to be only 25 years. To date, the Brent field has produced around three billion barrels of oil equivalent. read more

May 16 (UPI) — Royal Dutch Shell has started the process to take down legacy operations at the Bravo production platform in the North Sea, which supports the Brent oil field, Wood Group said.

The Scottish oilfield services company said it secured a contract from Royal Dutch Shell to start tearing down the platform. “Effectively immediately,” the company said it was preparing the platform for removal and carrying out modifications so it can “operate on minimum manning mode.” read more

by: Chris Tighe, North East Correspondent

While the Brent Delta decommissioning is not controversial, Shell’s proposal to leave the concrete and steel structures that support the four Brent topsides in the sea, as well as other materials, are being opposed by environmental groups.

FULL FT ARTICLE

Sky News: 29 April 2017

The largest vessel on the planet has successfully carried out the world’s biggest lift at sea, plucking a 24,000-tonne oil rig platform from the North Sea.

The mammoth engineering task was carried out as part of the first phase of decommissioning one of the most important oilfields in the region.

Engineers took hours to position the specially-built £2.4bn Pioneering Spirit into place around the Brent Delta platform.

But it took just seconds for the powerful hydraulic system to lift the topside off its supporting legs, setting a world record in the process. read more

Written by Mark Lammey – 19/04/2017 12:18 pm

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said Shell had failed to put appropriate controls in place to protect workers from dangerous gases in one of the platform’s legs.

HSE said the company had identified the risks of exposure to hydrogen sulphide and hydrocarbon gas while accessing the column C1 leg.

But Shell did not adequately describe how control measures would be “organised, controlled, monitored or reviewed”, according to HSE.

The prohibition notice was served early in February. read more

April 10 (UPI) — Royal Dutch Shell hasn’t provided enough information on plans to take down key North Sea infrastructure to address our concerns, environmental groups said.

Shell started a 60-day consultation period for its plans to decommission three of its Brent production platforms in the North Sea in early February. That consultation period concludes at the end of the business day Monday.

In preparation, a consortium of environmental groups said they opposed the decommissioning plans as submitted because of the lack of information. Lang Banks, the Scottish director of environmental group WWF, said that, by his read, the outline from Shell lacks “qualitative judgments and opinions” from experts, including some of the engineers at the Dutch supermajor. read more

INVEZZ.Com: Group under fire over plans to abandon North Sea structures

Oil major sets out case for leaving concrete legs of Brent oil platforms

by Tsveta Zikolova: Thursday, 09 Feb 2017

Royal Dutch Shell (LON:RDSA) has come under fire over its plans to decommission the Brent oil and gas field in the North Sea. The move would see the company leave several structures in place, with the oil major arguing that removing them would be risky as well as costly.

The Financial Times reported yesterday that environmental groups had accused Shell of cutting corners to save costs as a public consultation began on the biggest decommissioning project of its kind in the oil industry. The Anglo-Dutch oil major said yesterday that it had submitted plans to the UK government which include removing the upper parts of the group’s four Brent platforms in the North Sea. The company, however, wants to leave behind the concrete legs, as well as 64 subsea storage tanks, and drill cuttings contaminated with oil. read more

OilVoice.com: Shell – Public consultation begins on Brent oil and gas field decommissioning programme

Posted by OilVoice Press: 09-Feb-2017

An extended 60-day public consultation on recommendations to decommission the Brent oil and gas field in the North Sea has begun today following submission by Shell U.K. Limited (“Shell”), the field’s operator, of a comprehensive decommissioning programme to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). The field, located 115 miles north-east of the Shetland Islands has produced around three billion barrels of oil equivalent since production commenced in 1976, which is almost 10% of UK production. read more

Royal Dutch Shell are likely to take their time over the Brent decommissioning process due to the controversial fallout from a previous disposal attempt, according to one industry analyst.

The energy giant hit the headlines back in 1995 when it first floated plans to dispose of the Brent Spar holding and loading platform by sinking it in the deep waters of the Atlantic.

After getting wind of the plans, environmental group Greenpeace mounted a large-scale media campaign against the dumping of the Shell-owned oil and tanker loading buoy.

Protesters managed to occupy the installation for nearly three weeks before being evicted.

Shell later said the Brent Spar had become of “symbolic significance out of all proportion to its environmental effect”. read more

Adam Vaughan Energy correspondent

Monday 6 February 2017 07.01 GMT

When the company proposed sinking the Spar oil storage buoy in 1995, it prompted protests by Greenpeace, petrol boycotts in Germany and a falling share price. Shell was eventually forced to back down and find a more environmentally-friendly plan.

FULL ARTICLE

By DAVID SHAND: PUBLISHED: 00:01, Wed, Feb 1, 2017

A “GENERATIONAL change” in North Sea oil and gas production was signalled yesterday after Shell sold a large chunk to private equity-backed exploration group Chrysaor in a £3billion deal.

The sale is part of Shell’s plans to dispose of £24billion of assets by 2018 to reduce its debts following its £35billion takeover of BG Group last year. 

Major producers like Shell are also withdrawing from the North Sea to focus on higher profit areas such as Brazil.  read more

Royal Dutch Shell Plc’s $3.8 billion sale of North Sea oil and gas fields creates a model for further transactions in a region where the question of who pays to remove decades-old offshore platforms has been an obstacle for other deals.

Shell’s agreement with Chrysaor Holdings Ltd. included the condition that Europe’s largest oil company covers $1 billion in decommissioning costs, leaving the private-equity-backed explorer with an estimated $2.9 billion of liabilities. Sharing end-of-life costs between buyers and sellers is likely to remain the trend in the North Sea, where the billions of dollars of spending required to remove aging platforms and pipelines over the coming years presents a “real challenge” to deal-making, according to consultant Wood Mackenzie Ltd. read more

By Ron Bousso | LONDON

Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) has agreed to sell a package of oil and gas fields to private equity-backed Chrysaor for $3.8 billion, giving the Anglo-Dutch group a major boost in its drive to reduce debt following the acquisition of BG Group.

The deal, which accounts for more than half of Shell’s production in the North Sea, will breathe new life into the ageing North Sea where production has steadily declined since the late 1990s and where oil majors such as Shell and BP have struggled to generate profits. read more

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board has joined a group that’s in advanced talks to buy a package of Royal Dutch Shell Plc’s U.K. North Sea assets for more than $2 billion, people familiar with the matter said.

Canada’s largest pension fund has joined Washington-based EIG Global Energy Partners and North Sea-explorer Chrysaor Holdings Ltd. to bid for the operations, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private.

The sale is a key part of Shell’s plans to divest about $30 billion in assets through 2018 to help offset the $54 billion acquisition of BG Group, which increased debt and lowered its credit rating. Chief Executive Officer Ben van Beurden has vowed to boost savings following a two-year slump in crude oil prices. read more

Jillian Ambrose: 22 JANUARY 2017 • 8:00PM

Shell’s plans to sell off UK oil assets are expected to move ahead within weeks ahead of an M&A boom for the North Sea.

City sources have said that private-equity backed investment funds are expected to close in on asset sales from supermajor Shell as well as French energy giant Engie amid rising investor confidence in the oil market recovery.

In the wake of the oil price crash early last year industry experts predicted that cash strapped oil companies would streamline their portfolios by selling off assets to bargain hungry funds, but deals have been slow to emerge due to market volatility. read more

by: Andrew Ward and Nathalie Thomas in London

Much of the detail has already been revealed. Shell is aiming to remove the 24,000-tonne “topside” of its Brent Delta platform next summer. A specially designed ship the length of five jumbo jets will then carry the structure to a yard in Teesside for recycling.

However, the focus of the consultation is expected to be on Shell’s plans to leave most of the subsea infrastructure in place, including giant concrete legs each as heavy as the Empire State Building. read more

 “Shell attacked over plan to ‘litter the sea’ by leaving behind oil rig bases”

By Bill Campbell

Littering the North Sea appears a rather emotive statement by the Professor, quite appalling, completely unacceptable etc. He also links the plans for the concrete structures to an outsourcing of jobs from Glasgow which is unrelated to the structures.

Professor Russell previously wrote about the storage cells containing radioactive material also in an exaggerated way, the sludge contains naturally occurring low-level radioactive material which many studies declare does not pose a risk to persons or the environment. read more

ONE of Scotland’s leading oil industry figures has attacked decommissioning plans by Shell that could see the giant legs of three offshore oil platforms left in the North Sea.

Speaking exclusively to The National, Professor Alex Russell – chairman of the Oil Industry Finance Association, who also chairs a working group on North Sea decommissioning – said: “It’s appalling, completely unacceptable, particularly when they are outsourcing jobs from Glasgow to India and elsewhere. read more

Written by Mark Lammey – 10/12/2016 12:02 am

Shell said today that it had submitted “a majority” of the plan for its Brent field decommissioning campaign to the UK Government.

Earlier, WWF Scotland cited a Shell communique to stakeholders as saying the plan was with the UK department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis).

But a spokesman for Shell later confirmed that the submission process had not been fully completed.

The remaining documents are expected to be handed in during the next few weeks, with a 60-day public consultation to start early next year. read more

Written by Rita Brown – 04/12/2016 3:54 pm

Shell has launched an investigation after it was forced to shut down and evacuate personnel from its Shearwater platform in the North Sea.

The oil major was drilling, what was thought to an exploration well, when the activity triggered an alarm.

Shell decided to evacuate all non-essential personnel and shut down operations.

A spokeswoman said: “Shell UK can confirm that production on our Shearwater platform was shut down on the evening of Friday 2nd December as a precaution due to an alarm being triggered during work on a new well. There has been no loss of containment. The coastguard and regulator were informed and the situation is being closely monitored. A precautionary downman took place on Saturday returning 62 non-essential personnel safely to Aberdeen. The platform remains shutdown in the meantime.” read more

By John Donovan (updated 18 November 2016)

Energy Voice has announced that it has teamed up with Shell to “celebrate 40 years of Brent”.

A series of related “promoted” articles are being published. I take that as meaning Shell is paying for the articles. If this assumption is correct, the only history included will be of the whitewashed variety.

I doubt there will be any reference to the consequences of Shell’s appalling safety record on the Brent platforms, with falsified safety records, a “Touch F*** All” regime in regard to critical equipment maintenance, followed by the cover-up and the deaths on Brent Bravo, leading to a record-breaking fine. Will the unseaworthy lifeboats get a mention? Of course not. Shell continued to put production and profits before safety. Just read this index of related articles. read more

By Irina Slav – Oct 17, 2016, 8:55 AM CDT

Jim Ratcliffe, the billionaire owner of chemicals conglomerate Ineos, will bid for Shell’s Buzzard oilfield in the North Sea valued at around US$2.2 billion (GBP 1.8 billion). The sale is part of Shell’s debt reduction plans, following its multibillion acquisition of gas major BG Group earlier this year. Total proceeds from asset sales are seen at up to US$30 billion (GBP 24.6 billion).

For Ratcliffe, if his bid wins, the deal would represent a much sought-after expansion into the energy industry of the country. His bid for Buzzard is the latest in the North Sea, after last year, Ineos acquired all the gas fields operated by German DEA Group in the U.K. North Sea shelf. The Buzzard field became property of Shell after the acquisition of BG Group. Ineos is also the owner of the only oil refinery in Scotland. read more

By Dinesh Nair: 12 October 2016

Royal Dutch Shell Plc has invited binding bids from parties including Ineos AG and Blackstone Group LP-backed Siccar Point Energy for the sale of some of its U.K. North Sea assets worth about $2 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.

North Sea-focused energy explorer Chrysaor Holdings Ltd. has teamed up with U.S. private equity firm EIG Global Energy Partners to submit a second-round bid before the Wednesday deadline, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private. No final agreements have been reached, they said. read more