Posts from ‘February, 2018’

Royal Dutch Shell Group Chairman Mark Moody-Stuart

Shell Group Chairman Sir Mark Moody-Stuart and his family became personally involved in the Donovan litigation and associated events.

Extract from the ebook “John Donovan, Shell’s Nightmare” (now available on Amazon websites globally)

(BACKGROUND INFORMATION ABOUT SHELL’S EPIC 25 YEAR FEUD WITH JOHN DONOVAN – which puts the extracts below in overall context.)

The extract below should be read in the context of the fact that we were besieged by undercover activity during the run-up to the SMART High Court Trial – the climax of our litigation alleging that Shell had stolen the SMART multi-partner loyalty card concept from our company Don Marketing. Shell brought a Counterclaim amid a barrage of aggressive threats and sinister activity against us.

Extract below from page 99

Anonymous Call received 14 June 1998

I received a telephone call from a different gentleman who refused to disclose his name. When I stated that I was not prepared to hold a conversation on that basis, he indicated that if I gave him a few minutes, it would become obvious that he had an intimate knowledge of the litigation and associated events. I would learn something to my advantage. Intrigued by his introduction, I listened to what he had to say. read more

…at all times, Shell’s directors based in The Hague and London were fully aware of what was happening in Nigeria and what the staff of Shell Nigeria were up to. The evidence also makes clear that staff in London and The Hague were not passive recipients of this information. A clear directing role is evident.

Extract from page 12 of an Amnesty International document headed: “A CRIMINAL ENTERPRISE?SHELL’S INVOLVEMENT IN HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN NIGERIA IN THE 1990s”

Under Executive Summary.

BEGINS

COMPLICITY IN THE MISCARRIAGE OF JUSTICE AND EXECUTION OF THE OGONI NINE

The culmination of the Nigerian military government’s campaign to crush the MOSOP protests was the execution of the Ogoni Nine on 10 November, 1995. Shell knowingly provided encouragement and motivation to the military authorities to stop the MOSOP protests, even after the authorities repeatedly committed human rights violations in Ogoniland and specifically targeted Ken Saro-Wiwa and MOSOP. By raising Ken Saro-Wiwa and MOSOP as a problem, Shell was reckless, and significantly exacerbated the risk to Saro-Wiwa and those linked to MOSOP. Shell knew full well that the government regularly violated the rights of those linked to MOSOP and had targeted Saro-Wiwa. Following the arrests and during the blatantly unfair trial, the nature of the danger was clear. However, even after the men were jailed, being subjected to torture or other ill-treated and facing the likelihood of execution, Shell continued to discuss ways to deal with the “Ogoni problem” with the government, and did not express any concern over the fate of the prisoners. Such conduct cannot be seen as other than endorsement and encouragement of the military government’s actions. read more

Reuters: LNG market needs $200 billion investment to meet demand: Shell: 26 FEB 2018

CNBC: Shell warns of liquefied natural gas shortage as LNG demand blows past expectations: 26 FEB 2018

MOSOP STATEMENT:

A toxic dump site belonging to the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited has been uncovered in K-Dere community of Ogoniland.

Speaking in Bori, headquarters of Khana local government area of Rivers State over the weekend, Publicity Secretary of MOSOP, Fegalo Nsuke said samples from the site had been tested in a U.K laboratory and the results have confirmed the toxicity of the site.

“We have been briefed by MOSOP leader, Ledum Mitee, on the situation in K-Dere where a toxic dump belonging to Shell had been uncovered. We have also visited the site to see things for ourselves.” Nsuke said read more

By Tsvetana Paraskova – Feb 23, 2018, 6:00 PM CST

Royal Dutch Shell plans to shut for a planned overhaul the 92,000-bpd gasoline producing unit at its refinery at Convent, Louisiana, for some six weeks starting in June, Reuters reported on Friday, quoting sources familiar with the refinery’s plans. The gasoline-producing fluid catalytic cracking unit (FCCU) at the 227,586-bpd Convent refinery, as well as the alkylation unit with 16,500 bpd capacity, are planned to be shut for an overhaul this summer, after Shell scrapped plans in November last year to permanently close the gasoline-producing unit at Convent. Shell decided not to permanently close the gasoline unit in early 2018, opting instead to overhaul it to extend its production life for at least another four to five years, Shell spokesman Ray Fisher told Reuters at that time. FULL ARTICLE read more

London (Platts)–23 Feb 2018 510 am EST/1010 GMT

Kazakhstan’s giant Kashagan oil field is achieving new production highs every month and has done better than 300,000 b/d, but development beyond the current phase is likely to be about “discretionary step-ups” rather than giant steps, Shell country chair and vice president Olivier Lazare said Thursday. Speaking at the IP Week conference in London, Lazare declined to specify the current production level, saying there were still reliability issues with the first phase, which started producing in 2016 after more than $50 billion of investment and multiple delays, and has a target of 370,000 b/d. FULL ARTICLE read more

By Meredith Taylor – Feb 21, 2018, 6:00 PM CST

Big Oil is due for a disruption.

The world’s most important industry has been carrying on without any significant changes in its day to day routine for far too long.

But now, the new tech on the block has its sights set on the multi-trillion-dollar oil and gas sector.

It’s official: Blockchain technology has infiltrated Big Oil.

The hype behind blockchain has reached a full-blown frenzy. And for good reason.

The technology, which creates secure ledgers for digital transactions and rapidly accelerates the pace at which transactions can be made, has the potential to disrupt every major industry: real estate, shipping, banking and healthcare. read more

Reuters Staff: 19 FEB 2018

AMSTERDAM, Feb 19 (Reuters) – Dutch gas company NAM on Monday said it sees no need for further measures at the Groningen field after a recent series of relatively small earthquakes in the region.

The Dutch gas sector regulator last week ordered a new review of production at the field in the north of the Netherlands, after three tremors with magnitudes of 1.7 to 2.2 between Feb. 8 and Feb. 11. 

After a 3.4 earthquake in January the Dutch government already said it would cut Groningen production by 44 percent as quickly as possible, while ordering the immediate shutdown of five production points in the earthquake-prone field. read more

Printed below is an English translation of information published today by Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij BV (NAM), a joint venture between Royal Dutch Shell and ExxonMobil each owning a 50% share in the company responsible for the earthquake blighted Groningen Gas Field and consequential potential bill for untold billions in damages to effected residences.

Sometimes demolition is the only option for safety reasons…

Together in debate about the preservation of Groningen

At a meeting of the Noorderpers Society on 19 February, NAM spokesperson Hein Dek, at the request of the organization, debated with Annemarie Heite, Marco Glastra (Het Groninger Landschap), DvhN-journalist Maaike Wind and ‘Middelstum activists’ Marko Datema and Mariska The long. Subject: what does the future of Groningen look like? read more

Extract from the ebook “John Donovan, Shell’s Nightmare” (now available on Amazon websites globally)

(BACKGROUND INFORMATION ABOUT SHELL’S EPIC 25 YEAR FEUD WITH JOHN DONOVAN – which puts the extracts below in overall context.)

We were besieged by undercover activity during the run-up to the SMART High Court Trial – the climax of our litigation alleging that Shell had stolen the SMART multi-partner loyalty card concept from our company Don Marketing. Shell had in reply brought a Counterclaim amid a barrage of aggressive threats and sinister activity against us. With regards to the reference to Charles Hoots, I have a file of information about him and his spying expertise, including the extensive article co-authored by him: “SHOULD THE CIA START SPYING FOR CORPORATE AMERICA?”. There is a reference to Mr Hoots in the US National Security Archive and his involvement in an intelligence related project concerning Afghanistan.  read more

Shell is said to be looking to buy a ‘significant stake’ in Fourth Partner Energy, a rooftop solar power firm, and may even acquire it read more

by Greenpeace International: 21 February 2018

Batangas, Philippines, 21 February 2018 – Activists from Greenpeace Southeast Asia, Philippines unfurled a banner reading “PEOPLE AND PLANET, NOT PROFIT” from Shell’s Batangas oil refinery today, sending a sharp reminder to Shell to attend upcoming hearings into the responsibility of big fossil fuel companies for climate-related human rights harms.  The activists also delivered a letter to Shell demanding they own up to their responsibility for contributions to the climate crisis, and show up at the first hearing taking place in March. The hearings are part of a world-first investigation led by the Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines into how climate-related human rights harms are fuelled by their business of extracting and marketing fossil fuels. FULL ARTICLE read more

Shell’s Norco Refinery

By Della Hasselle The Advocate (Baton Rouge): Posted Feb 20, 2018 at 12:10 PM Updated Feb 20, 2018 at 12:17 PM

When Iris Carter heard that the Shell Chemical plant near her childhood home in Norco had been ordered to spend $10 million on pollution control equipment to resolve decades of allegations that the plant was violating the federal Clean Air Act, she felt a variety of emotions. She was frustrated, she said, and angry. But she wasn’t surprised. As Carter sees it, this should have happened more than 20 years ago, when she and her family first helped start a campaign to abandon an area she said had become too polluted to live in. “The stink in the air was so strong it knocked you back,” Carter, now 66, remembers. “It was terrible.” FULL ARTICLE read more

20/02/2018 at 4:35pm Alice Cooke

The European Commission has given its approval for the Shell Petroleum Company (Shell) acquisition of First Utility. In December, Shell released a statement that said it will buy 100 per cent of independent energy provider, First Utility. It said at the time that the deal was set to complete in early 2018, subject to “regulatory and other approvals”. The EU Commission said in a statement: “The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the acquisition of Impello Limited by the Shell Petroleum Company, both of the UK. Impello is an independent energy supplier to household customers in the UK and Germany, active under the brand First Utility.” FULL ARTICLE read more

Royal Dutch Shell Plc said it’s potentially interested in BHP Billiton Ltd.’s oil assets on sale in the Permian basin in the U.S. as it seeks to boost its role in shale. The Anglo-Dutch company entered the prolific oil region in 2012 and plans to expand its position and generate positive cash flow next year, Andy Brown, Shell’s upstream director, said in an interview on Tuesday. The Permian offers production costs as low as $15 a barrel and is the driving force behind the current surge in U.S. output. Shell “will look at opportunities to bulk up our shale position,” Brown said at the International Petroleum Week conference in London. FULL ARTICLE read more

Shell gives $1 million to CCBC for process technology program read more