Royal Dutch Shell Group .com

SCANDAL, LIES & COVER-UP DESTROY SHELL'S REPUTATION

JAN 2004

The Times: How Shell blew a hole in a 100-year reputation

Daily Telegraph: Shell drops 'bombshell' on reserves

The West Australian: Investors howl for Shell's blood  

The Independent: Reserves shock wipes £8bn from value of oil giant Shell

London Evening Standard: Reserves shock hammers Shell

The Sunday Times: Shareholders can no longer be sure of Shell

The Sunday Times: A broken Shell

MARCH 2004

The New York Times: Shell Chairman Resigns Over Reserves Shock

The Mail on Sunday: Scandal of Shell's oil bonus

The Sunday Telegraph: Shell board shocked by devastating report

London Evening Standard: Shell facing up to 15 fraud claims

Yahoo News Report: Shell Execs Hid Reserves Problem

The Wall Street Journal: Shell Officials Kept Board in Dark

The Economist: Royal Dutch/Shell - Another Enron?

The law firm of Berger & Montague, P.C. has filed a securities fraud class action complaint against Royal Dutch Petroleum Company

The New York Times: Credit Agency Lowers Its Outlook on Shell

The Observer: FSA probes scandal of 'missing' Shell reserves

Mail on Sunday: Now FSA probes scandal at Shell

London Evening Standard: Watchdog probes Shell scandal

The Miami Herald: UK Financial Watchdog Launches Investigation into Shell Scandal

The Times: Shell chiefs in criminal inquiry over ‘lost’ reserves

The Times: Are predators eyeing lame Shell?

BBC News: Shell boss 'shocked' at revisions

The Guardian: Busted brands

The Sunday Telegraph: You can't be sure of Shell

The Sunday Telegraph: The Shell debacle infects four FTSE company bosses

The Observer: The Shell supertanker is holed below the line ('Everyone's very scared. They've all got their own lawyers,' said one City expert late last week about Shell, the once-unsinkable flagship of the global oil industry).

SundayHerald.com: After week of shocks, you can’t be sure of Shell

Daily Mail: Crisis grows at oil giant Shell

HoustonChronicle .com: Criminal investigation possible, Shell confirms

BBC RADIO 4 "FILE ON 4" TRANSCRIPT OF PROGRAMME BROADCAST ON 23 MARCH 04: "The world’s third largest oil and gas group, a British icon, is reeling from a scandal

APRIL 2004

Daily Times: Shell's corrupt shell game in Nigeria

Mail on Sunday: Shell chief 'had a private army' 

The Independent: Shell faces human rights grilling

The Independent: Shell man speaks (...entire CMD would be forced to resign)

The New York Times: Shell Officer Said to Have Ordered Report Destroyed

The Independent: Shell board studies crunch report on oil reserves fiasco

Financial Times: Unsure of Shell

The Daily Star: Shell scandal points to exaggerated estimates of oil reserves

Daily Telegraph: Shell to report on reserves debacle

London Evening Standard: Shell bosses lied to the City

Bloomberg.com: Shell Loses AAA Credit Rating, Lowered to AA+ by S&P (Update2)

San Francisco Chronicle: Shell exec said he was tired of lying; company's finance chief resigns

Houston Chronicle: 'Sick and tired about lying' at Shell

BBC.co.uk: Shell bosses 'fooled the market'  

The Independent: Lies, cover-ups, fat cats and an oil giant in crisis

ChannelNewsAsia: Shell name dragged through mud after explosive report: “The closely guarded reputation of Royal Dutch/Shell was left in tatters as British newspapers accused the oil giant of lies and a cover-up after an explosive internal report admitted executives knew of problems with reserves over two years ago.”: “"Lies, cover-ups, fat cats and an oil giant in crisis," was the damning front-page verdict of the Independent newspaper, which said Shell was facing the "biggest corporate scandal for almost 30 years". (ShellNews.net) 20 April 04

The Times: Deceitful Shell 'needs ten years' to rebuild exploration business

The Times: Unravelling of the cover-up

The Guardian: Trail of emails reveals depths of deceit at the heart of Shell

The New York Times: Shell's Report on Its Troubles Cites Discord at Top: "The report also noted that last December, Mr. van de Vijver sent an e-mail message directing a subordinate, Frank Coopman, to destroy a document Mr. Coopman had produced that concluded that the company was "under a legal obligation" to immediately correct overstatements of its proven reserves.": "Our story is not one anyone would be proud of, and we have no excuses," said Lord Ron Oxburgh, chairman of Shell Transport and Trading, the British half of Royal Dutch/Shell (19 April 04)

The Scotsman: Shell admits reserve 'lies'

The Scotsman: Shell admits reserve 'lies'

Edinburgh Evening News: Damning report shows Shell hid reserves shortfalls

The Scotsman: Shell implodes as e-mails provide damning evidence

Financial Times: Unsure of Shell

Financial Times: Observer Column: Shell-shocked  
(Corporate slogans consigned to the dustbin of history no. 94: "You can be sure of Shell.")

Minneapolis Star Tribune: Dutch/Shell Group exec was 'sick and tired' of lying

The Scotsman: Shell's reputation left in tatters

The Scotsman: Shell faces 15 US lawsuits

Tallahassee.com: Shell shaken by execs' dishonesty on holdings

TheStarOnline: Shell report exposes lies, CFO sacked

PlanetArk.com: Shell reserves scandal may aid Ogoni case

London Evening Standard: Shell facing court over 'rights abuses'

Bloomberg.com: Shell Loses AAA Rating at Fitch; Rating Cut to AA+ (Update1)

The Independent: Criminal charges loom over Shell

The Independent: We can all learn from Shell's debacle

Financial Times: Staff around the world left reeling as Shell image cracks

Forbes.com Shell's Watts was fired face to face, escorted away

Investors.com: Exxon, Halliburton, Shell and more

Sacked Shell boss 'escorted from HQ'

REPORT OF DAVIS POLK & WARDWELL TO THE SHELL GROUP - AUDIT COMMITTEE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Economist: Humiliation: A once proud firm, brought down by its own flaws, needs a thorough shake-up

The Economist: Royal Dutch/Shell: Sick and tired about lying: “I AM becoming sick and tired about lying.” Those are not words shareholders want to hear from a senior executive.": “The report into how the phoney numbers emerged paints a picture of deception and backbiting at the top—and, despite ongoing board efforts to exonerate the new management, contains plenty to encourage shareholder lawsuits and, maybe, criminal prosecutions, not least in America, where jail may await. More senior Shell people may yet have to quit.”

Daily Telegraph: Shell's lies over reserves spark FSA investigation

The Independent: FSA confirms formal inquiry into Shell over reserves scandal

Financial Times: Shell will have to dig deep to recover its reputation

ChannelNewsAsia.com: Shell name dragged through mud after explosive report

ChannelNewsAsia.com: Moody's cuts 'AAA' debt rating of Shell subsidiaries

SundayHerald.com: Who can be sure of Shell today?

The Independent: DTI is poised to probe Shell as scandal grows

TimesOnline: Agenda: William Lewis: And so farewell then dour, plump, bald bloke..
(Shell is a disreputable company in need of a strong injection of ethics)

Al-Jazeera: Shell Oil Lies - A tip of the iceberg as World Oil crisis looms?

Daily Mail: Shell attacked from all sides

Daily Mail: Shell's £13bn credibility gap

National Post: Shell Canada distances itself from parent company reserves estimates scandal

MAY 2004

The Independent: Watchdog shakes up oil audits in the wake of Shell scandal

smh.com.au: Shell reputation reserves close to emptyInternational Herald Tribune: Shell Concealed Extent of Its Problems to Protect Nigeria Partnership.

The Independent: Shell paid little attention to its in-house legal team. But as the recent scandal showed, no modern business can afford to keep its briefs unbriefed

Newark Star-Ledger: Judge to choose lead plaintiffs in Shell oil reserve fraud case.
("This is a fraud that was orchestrated apparently at the highest levels of the company, extending over many, many years, and executed knowing that this is defrauding the public.")

Sacramento Bee: Shell denies greed spurs the closure

BBC News: Shell trims back reserves again -Can Shell draw a line under the scandal?

Financial Times: Shell aims to Shed arrogant reputation  

Daily Telegraph: Watts' pension pot tops £10m

news-press.com: Shell Oil replaces sulfur-tainted gasoline

JUNE 2004

Local10.com: Tainted Gas Leads To Class-Action Suit: Federal Lawsuit Filed Against Shell Oil: 2 June 2004

The Wall Street Journal: US Court Reinstates Shell, ChevronTexaco Price Fixing Suit: 1 June 2004

The Independent: “Even those clowns at Shell": 5 June 2004

Mail on Sunday: Chairman Jeroen van der Veer in frame over Shell scandal – could lead to 20 years in jail: 6 June 2004

nbc6.net: Another Class-Action Lawsuit Filed Against Shell Over Tainted Gas; “Another day, another lawsuit for Shell Oil": 9 June 2004

Daily Mail: Shell aims to quell rebellion: "The National Association of Pension Funds... is preparing to publish its report into the scandal-hit oil giant this week": 14 June 2004

Radio Netherlands: Oil and Ethics: 15 June 2004

THE ABOVE ARE A SELECTION OF ARTICLES PUBLISHED PRIOR TO EIGHT ROYAL DUTCH SHELL COMPANIES ISSUING DEFAMATION PROCEEDINGS AGAINST SHELL WHISTLEBLOWER DR JOHN HUONG FOR ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN JUNE 2004 ON THIS WEBSITE UNDER HIS NAME

STILL JUNE 2004

The Guardian: Shell tries to win friends as it owns up to mistakes: 15 June 2004

Times-Picayune: Company can't say which locations sold the tainted gasoline: 16 June 2004

The Guardian: 'I'm really very worried for the planet': Ron Oxburgh is chipping away at the fossilised thinking that cost Shell its reputation: 17 June 2004

The Times: Double Dutch: Once again, Shell has managed to strike negative publicity where it was thought that none could be found: 17 June 2004

Financial Times: How Shell changed its culture and lost its way: Or, as a "shocked, dismayed and ashamed" Mr van der Veer put it: "We have more problems than just the reserves issue.": 18 June 2004

USNewsWires.com: Regulators Given Internal Shell Documents: "provide incontrovertible evidence the company has once again misled California…”

The Times: The lost Arabic school for scandal: “the spy school": 22 June 2004

TheAdvocate.com: Woman sues Shell Oil, refinery for damage caused by gasoline: 23 June 2004

The Independent: Shell hires new finance director after reserves scandal 25 June 2004

London Evening Standard: Shell 'has lied for 10 years': 25 June 2004

The Independent: Shell hires new finance director after reserves scandal: 25 June 2004

London Evening Standard: SHAMED “Shell chairman Sir Philip Watts has secured a pay-off worth more than £1m in cash plus stock options potentially worth £6m more”: 25 June 2004

Reuters.com: Shell says Watts pay-off does not rule out legal action: "Asked if the announcement earlier in the day of a one million pound settlement meant the company SHEL.L had decided not to sue its disgraced boss, a spokesman said on Friday, "We cannot speculate on the outcome and implications of external investigations.": 25 June 2004

ChannelNewsAsia: Shell hit by new lawsuit in US over reserves scandal:  “fresh lawsuit names 27 directors and officers of Royal Dutch/Shell, and also their accounting and audit firms, PricewaterhouseCoopers International and KPMG International": 26 June 2004

Financial Times: Pension funds file suit on behalf of Shell: 26 June 2004

NewsDay.com: Shell pays former executive nearly $2 million in severance: PLUS "lawsuit... suggests the defendants forfeit salaries, bonuses, stock awards, profits and special benefits for violating their fiduciary duties": 26 June 2004

Daily Telegraph: Sacked Shell boss walks away with £1m: “despite his role in the oil giant's reserves debacle": 26 June 2004

Paper by Alfred Donovan prepared for presentation at the National Union of Ogoni Students (NUOS International, USA) Convention in Lincoln, Nebraska, held on 26/27 June 2004

LETTER TO WILLIAM LERACH, US CLASS ACTION LAWYER: INCONTROVERTIBLE DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE OF SHELL DELIBERATELY HIDING INFORMATION FROM ITS SHAREHOLDERS FROM 1994 ONWARDS: 26 June 2004

ChannelNewsAsia.com: Embattled Shell braces for shareholder showdown: “officers and directors of these interconnected companies have hidden behind an opaque and complicated corporate structure to falsify proved oil and gas reserves for nearly 10 years": 27 June 2004

The Observer: Ethical funds dump Shell shares: “blue-chip City institutions have confirmed that they have ditched all their Shell shares”": 27 June 2004

Taipei Times: Former chairman of Royal/Dutch Shell gets giant payout: "after an accounting scandal": 27 June 2004

BBC News: Shell appeals to shareholders' patience "You are still covering up the scandal," the heckler cried to some applause,": 28 June 2004

The Guardian: Shareholders vent anger over Shell scandal: 28 June 2004

The New York Times: Shell Asks Shareholders for Forgiveness: 28 June 2004

Oil & Gas Journal: Pension funds sue Shell brass, auditors, seeking damages, policy changes": 28 June 2005 (This claim resulted in a multi-million dollar settlement by Shell in 2005)

Daily Telegraph: Shell's board survive: No wonder Shell is in such a mess: 29 June 2004

The Guardian: Shell investors vent fury on 'incompetent' board: "This company is giving world class salaries to non-executives for a world class scandal.": 29 June 2004

The New York Times: Testy Annual Meeting Focuses on Shell's Scandal: “A few of Shell's top executives mislead shareholders and the financial world, he said. ”In the United States,'' he said, "they'd have been taken away in handcuffs.": 29 June 2004

Business Report (SA) Shell chairman to view problems at Sapref, says activist: "Shareholders are tired of Shell's lying and spinning": “a chorus of disillusionment over its integrity and transparency": 29 June 2004

Toronto Star: Oil giant's brass beg for pardon and time: Contrition expressed at Royal Dutch/Shell: Reserve-booking fiasco stays at centre stage: 29 June 2004

The Times: Investors snub Shell in vote on liability: “When this scandal came up, Sir Mark was present. Why did he allow this departure from Shell’s business principles? He should resign from all his other directorships.": 29 June 2004

The Independent: Investors lambast Shell over ousted chairman's £1m pay-off: “the £1.06m pay-off for Sir Philip Watts proved that, even under new leadership, the company was still living in "a parallel universe": 29 June 2004

The Independent: Still Shell-shocked: “a company which is obviously still in denial": 29 June 2004

JULY 2004

Daily Telegraph: Shell to clean up its act with assets sales: “struggling to restore its reputation": 2 July 2004

The Wall Street Journal: Shell Will Take Quarterly Charge Of $330 Million: “reserves-booking scandal this year exposing Shell's need for new reserves": 2 July 2004

Toronto Star: Shell reduces profit over reserves $276 million U.S. overstatement: “Filing reveals impact of debacle”: "inappropriate" accounting in other areas": 3 July 2004

Washington Post: Shell Restates Profits: "revision followed an embarrassing series of disclosures": 3 July 2004

The New York Times: Shell Says It Overstated Profits by $276M: "profits.. exaggerated.."; "inappropriate accounting.."-"resulted in profits being embellished": 3 July 2004

The Observer: Bad publicity - not goodbye, but good buy: “Shell illustrates how a steady barrage of negative publicity can bring a company to its knees”: “The company's reputation is now in tatters”: "We list the latest batch of leaders and laggards in the corporate publicity league in the accompanying table. These rankings are based upon news reports in the last three months. The current '10 worst' list is led by Shell.": 4 July 2004

The Observer: Counting the wrong beans: 'At some stage something happened to Shell's values that made it acceptable to put up figures that weren't completely above board,': 4 July 2004

News Leader.com Shell admits overstating its profits: "also made errors in the way it accounted for exploration costs, certain gas contracts and earnings per share of its parent companies": 4 July 2004

Sunday Telegraph: BP reserves the right to go its own way: “in the wake of the scandal at Royal Dutch/Shell": 4 July 2004

Business Day: Overstatement raised oil giant's profit by $432m: “Last Monday the leaders of Royal Dutch/Shell asked shareholders for forgiveness and time to revamp the oil giant.": 5 July 2004

nzherald.co.nz: Shell takes profit hit: “profits being exaggerated”: "inappropriate accounting”: “profits being embellished": 5 July 2004

LETTER FAXED TO MALAYSIAN HIGH COURT JUDGE 5 July 2004

Email from Mr Charles Wiwa, nephew of the late Nobel Laureate Ken Saro-Wiwi: "...we trust that our weapon of TRUTH will prevail over the evil tendencies of the 'multi-national goliath'": 8 July 2004

Financial Times: Shelled out: “If only the executives of Royal Dutch/Shell, under fire over its reserves debacle, could achieve redemption so easily": 9 July 2004

Financial Times: S&P raises concerns over Shell review: “battered by a scandal": 9 July 2004

Financial Times: Shell edges closer to shake-up: “in the wake of the Anglo-Dutch oil group's reserves crisis": 9 July 2004

The Wall Street Journal: Shell Sold 24% Of Its Malaysian Refining Company Thursday: “dogged for months by a scandal over the accounting of its oil and natural gas reserves": 9 July 2004

The Times: SHELL SHOCK: The Money Programme provides a clear and merciless indictment of Shell, a company that prided itself on being a safe investment for widows and orphans: "...Walter van de Vijver, was appalled and fired off numerous warnings. “I am becoming sick and tired,” he wrote, “of lying about the extent of our reserves.”: 10 July 2004

Daily Telegraph: Shell accounts change brings $226m upgrade: “Shell has been plunged into crisis after admitting that it had overstated its "proven" oil and gas reserves by 23pc": 14 July 2005

The Wall Street Journal: Shell's Outside Auditors Got Warning on Reserves in 2002: “The documents also suggest that some potential reserves problems at Shell were much more widely known and discussed": "Shell's reserves-accounting scandal raises new questions about the responsibility of independent auditors." 15 July 2004

London Evening Standard: Shell alarm two years before scandal: “SHELL'S external auditors were warned the oil giant was inflating its energy reserves two years before the company finally came clean": 15 July 2004

Reuters: Outside auditors warned on Shell reserves: “documents… indicate problems were flagged repeatedly to a wider circle of senior executives and board members than previously disclosed": 15 July 2004

BBC TV: Oil giant Shell's investors shocked: “that's fraud in the United States and the Justice Department will have a basis for criminally prosecuting the executives": 15 July 2004

The Times: SHELL SHOCK:  BBC Two, 9.50pm:  “I am becoming sick and tired,” he wrote, “of lying about the extent of our reserves.": 15 July 2005

The Times: Shell tipped to merge UK and Dutch parents: “Shell is under intense pressure to streamline its complex board structure after the reserves misreporting scandal": 15 July 2005

The Scotsman: Shell tight-lipped on claim: “TROUBLED Shell was involved in fresh turbulence yesterday as it stonewalled questions": 16 July 2004

The Guardian: Shell had early reserves warning: “Shell admitted yesterday that it had been warned about inflated reserves before it was forced to issue the first of four downgrades this year.": 16 July 2004

SHELL2004.com: UNOFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT BBC2 TV “THE MONEY PROGRAMME”, BROADCAST 15 JULY 2004, 9.50pm: 17 July 2004 - For extracts from the content read below: -

ShellNews.net commentary on the content: Stanley Bernstein of Bernstein Liebhard & Lifshitz LLP, the lead US plaintiff lawyers bringing a class action case against Shell for Pennsylvanian State Retirement Funds, described the scandal on the BBC TV Money Programme in the following terms: "There are a lot of investors and many maybe more investors that were affected by this fraud than any other fraud in history". The following are extracts from the same programme broadcast on 15 July 2004.

Comments about current Shell Chief Executive, Jeroen van der Veer:
"signed statements declaring that the submission known as a 20F was a true and faithful description of Shell’s reserves"; "He signed false financial statements"; "he signed certifications that the financial statements met with SEC guidelines."

Comments about the Royal Dutch Shell Committee of Managing Directors (the CMD):
"And what about the Committee of Managing Directors? They too had received a much stronger warning about fooling the market. Jeroem van der Veer and the rest of the CMD still took no action."

DESCRIPTIONS USED ABOUT THE CONDUCT OF SHELL MANAGEMENT: "
deceit"; "false pretences"; "falsely exaggerating"; "misled the world"; "basically they had been told a lie"; "embellished on the numbers"; "exaggerated the numbers"; "basically we lied to you"; "cover it up"; "doctoring the books"; "inventing numbers"; "certifying the reserve which he knows doesn’t exist"; "reserves replacement and production growth were inflated"; "I am becoming sick and tired of lying about the extent of our reserves"; "cover-up"; "actually destroyed documents"; "the scandal blew up and the company’s reputation carefully nurtured over a century was destroyed"; "Shell has lied intentionally and deceived the public" ; "now they know that Shell lied to them and cost them money"; "a fraud perpetrated over a long period of time"; "a fraud perpetrated by the very heads of the company".

There was none of the usual caveats which precede statements or comments which would otherwise be labelled as libellous: e.g. "allegedly". The above descriptions were applied during the BBC TV programme without any such qualification. They were put on record as statements of FACT.


The Guardian: worthwhile policy or simply propaganda?: Or take Shell. It suffered a series of public relations disasters in the mid-90s, notably the Brent Spar oil rig disposal fiasco and its association with human rights abuses in Nigeria. These debacles spurred it on to spend millions on rebranding, wooing environmentalists and human rights groups and investing in renewable energy. Yet, having done all that, it now finds a lot of its good work undone by the financial scandal of its under-reporting of oil reserves.17 July 2004

The Sunday Times: Market Mover: Richard Dunn: “As the Shell scandal proves, there are reserve issues with some of the major oil companies": 18 July 2004

Financial Times: Shell in move to reduce its legal costs: a host of civil lawsuits following its admission that it overstated its oil and natural gas reserves”: “550 in-house lawyers": 20 July 2004

The Guardian: Nigerianisation: Shell's solution for troubled delta: “The reserves scandal that led to Sir Philip's removal in part related to Nigeria": 21 July 2004

The Wall Street Journal: SEC May Require Auditors To Sign Off on Oil, Gas Reserves: “SEC's re-evaluation of its rules comes on the heels of the accounting scandal": 21 July 2004

The New York Times: House Panel to Begin a Hearing on Shell's Reserve Scandal: "Shell officials were asked to testify, but will not, the company said.": 21 July 2004

LA Times: "scandal at Shell oil": SEC Weighs Requiring Certified Reserves: 'overstatement of its proven reserves and "inappropriate" accounting in other business areas resulted in profits being inflated by $432 million.': 21 July 2004

CBCNews: Shell to compensate Quebec motorists for damage caused by gas additive: “Hundreds of thousands of Quebec motorists may be eligible to receive money from Shell as part of a settlement of a class-action lawsuit.": 21 July 2004

CJAD.com: Shell Canada disputes $100 million figure in suit involving Quebec drivers; "related to a fuel additive the company used in 2001 and 2002": 22 July 2004

The Times: US watchdog under fire over oil reserves scandal: “House Committee on Financial Services convened a hearing on the Shell reserves scandal.": 22 July 2004

The Wall Street Journal: Shell Canada Settles Suit Involving Quebec Drivers –CP: "Shell Canada could pay up to $100 million to about 500,000 Quebec drivers": 22 July 2004

National Post: Shell Canada settles Quebec class-action suit: “Radio-Canada reported Shell Canada could pay as much as $100-million": 22 July 2004

London Evening Standard: How BP lords it over Shell: “looking ahead, one is in terrific shape, the other could be in terrible trouble”: “Shell's reputation among investors lies in tatters": 25 July 2004

London Evening Standard: The oil giants' scorecard: "How they add up: BP 66, Shell 49": "Shell Desperately needs to find more oil after the reserves debacle”: “Bonuses for the executive team for 2003 were scrapped in the light of the reserves scandal" 25 July 2004

Bloomberg.com: BP, Shell, Eni Results May Put European Oil-Stock Gains at Risk: “The company disclosed in January it overstated oil reserves for more than five years.": 26 July 2004

Financial Times: Oil sector governance: “Royal Dutch/Shell's reserves downgrade was a dramatic failure of corporate oversight.”: “Good reputations take time to build, but are quickly lost.": 26 July 2004

Business Week: Can Shell Put Out This Oil Fire? "a devastating portrait of Shell as a dysfunctional company”: "The two boards should move quickly to find a successor to the 56-year-old van der Veer, who looks like a caretaker.": 26 July 2004

Reuters: BP profits at bottom of forecasts: “has outshone scandal-hit rival Royal Dutch/Shell": 27 July 2004

Fortune.com: Is Shell Ready to Rebound? "Forget Iraq and Iran," says Gheit. "Royal Dutch/Shell needs a regime change.": 27 July 2004

Fortune.com: Now If Only Shell Could Find Some Oil: Forget the reserve drama: At the current rate, Shell will run out of oil in a decade: "Shell will be a no-growth company at least for the next few years.": 27 July 2004

Financial Times: BP earnings rise 23% as week of good news begins: "Shell was especially hit this year by the scandal that revealed it had wrongly booked more than 20 per cent of its reserves" 28 July 2004

The Guardian: Kremlin soothes BP over trading in Russia: “now was the opportune time to make a takeover move for Shell, whose share price has been battered by slow growth and the oil reserves scandal.": 28 July 2004

The Guardian: High oil prices boost BP profits: “outshone its scandal-hit rival Royal Dutch/Shell this year": 28 July 2004

Thursday 29 July, 2004

Wall Street Journal: Shell Transport To Resolve FSA And SEC Investigations: "Shell to cease and desist from future violations of, the antifraud, reporting, recordkeeping and internal control provisions... SEC rules.”

Wall Street Journal: Royal Dutch/Shell 2Q Net Profit $4.0B: “Management… remains unable…to estimate…possible losses from the entire set of regulatory and other actions and litigation in relation to the reserves restatement.”

The Scotsman: Shell Fined £65M after Reserves Crisis: “inquiry which found that Shell violated reporting, record-keeping and anti-trust rules.”

Reuters: Shell pays fines for reserves woes: “Royal Dutch/Shell will pay about $150 million (82 million pounds) in fines for an oil reserves scandal that tarnished its reputation”

TheStarOnline: Shell fined US$120 million "Rebuilding credibility'' and "regaining trust'' are now the company's key priorities, it said in its annual report.”

BBC NEWS: Shell fined over reserves scandal: “will pay a penalty of £17m to the FSA - the biggest fine ever imposed by the regulator - and a $120m (£65.7m) civil penalty in the US.

London Evening Standard: Shell pays over reserves scandal: “It still faces a host of multi-billion dollar class-action lawsuits and a US Department of Justice probe.”: "Shell revealed today production was likely to remain flat until 2007 at best"

Bloomberg: Shell Pays $150 Million to End Probe; Output May Fall: “hopeful step in ending the reserves debacle that led to the ouster of three senior executives, the loss of a top-tier investment rating and more than a dozen shareholder lawsuits”

Yahoo.com: SEC Settlement With Royal Dutch Shell Fails to Fix Governance Flaws That Allowed Fraud to Occur and Fails to Hold Executives Personally Accountable for Over $150 Million in Fines

Friday 30 July, 2004

The Times: Simple solutions are best for Shell: “One of the world’s most trusted investments lost its credibility and its top credit rating.”: "directors and top managers were the authors of Shell’s misfortunes"

The Times: Shell and BASF set to sell $6bn plastics business : “first strategic move for the Anglo-Dutch oil company since becoming mired in its oil reserves scandal in January.”

The Times: Shell agrees to pay fines of £83m: “continuing criminal investigation by the US Department of Justice.”: “Both Euronext and AFM, the Dutch securities institute, are also investigating Shell

Financial Times: Shell pays $151m to watchdogs: “Thursday's announcement has no bearing on the civil and criminal cases against individuals linked to the company.”

Financial Times: US watchdog shows its teeth: "Parmalat"; "Enron"; "Shell"

AccountancyAge.com: Shell pays huge penalties to regulators: “Shell also confirmed that it breached market abuse provisions of the FSA's Financial Services and Markets Act 2000”

Business Report: Shell gets hefty fine for reserves fiasco : “The SEC found the Anglo-Dutch group had violated reporting, record-keeping and anti-trust rules”

The Washington Times: Shell agrees on penalty to settle charges: “While trying to put the scandal behind it, Shell reported a 16 percent increase in underlying second-quarter profits thanks to higher oil prices.”

Financial Times: Setting the scene: "Shell expects hostile takeover bids from BP and ExxonMobil within the next few months. These bids will be followed by a successful 'white knight' bid from Total”

Financial Times: Shell fighter begins the big clean-up: “it could itself become a bid target”; “if you get it hopelessly wrong, then people start sniffing around.": "In answer to a question about whether they are sniffing now, he said: "You will have to ask the sniffers"

Financial Times: UK and US regulators team up and levy £83m in penalties: “more robust policing since the Enron scandal broke in 2001.”

The Independent: Shell's road to redemption remains a long one: “An extradition battle involving Shell's former chairman Sir Phil Watts would provide splendid entertainment but it would also guarantee plenty more bad headlines”

The Independent: Shell pays £83m fine to settle scandal over oil reserves: “Shell and a number of former and serving directors are also still under criminal investigation by the US Justice Department”

The Boston Globe: Shell to pay $151m to settle misstatements: “fails to hold personally accountable the corporate insiders who perpetrated the fraud,"

Daily Telegraph: Shell to pay watchdogs £80m for oil reserves row: “but warned it could not put a figure on the cost of investor lawsuits.”

The Wall Street Journal: Shell to Pay $150 Million in Penalties: “Shell also has arranged with U.S. authorities to grant Dutch and British employees special diplomatic safe passage to and from American shores”

New York Times: Shell to Pay $150 Million in Settlement on Reserves: "production fell 5 percent to the equivalent of 3.58 million barrels of oil a day": "The underlying numbers are 'pretty horrendous,' said Neil McMahon, an analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein in London,": “Separately, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission said… Shell's energy trading unit, Coral Energy Resources, had agreed to pay $30 million to settle accusations that it had submitted FALSE price data to publishers"

Daily Mail: Shell is beached in the past: “there are deep-seated problems at Shell that go far beyond fiddling the numbers to make the reserves look better than they were.”: “exploration and production look dire”

FT: An ocean of difference across the Atlantic: “It still faces a regulatory inquiry in the Netherlands, potential criminal investigation by the US Justice Department and myriad class action suits. They form a pretty powerful deterrent against following Shell's abuse of the markets."

FT: Shell files revised statement with SEC: The revision was necessary because of the Dutch-UK oil and gas group's serial restatements of proved reserves earlier this year.

FT: Settling the bill but not the issues: “companies also tend to look to their more reputable peers, of which Shell used to be one. This is no longer the case.”: “whether a management that lied to its biggest shareholders would have any compunction doing the same to Nigerian villagers.": 30 July 2004

Saturday 31 July, 2004

The Guardian: Shell fined £84m over reserves scandal:  “Shell is facing a criminal investigation by the US department of justice, ongoing inquiries by the Dutch financial market regulator and the Euronext stock exchange as well as litigation in the US”

The Wall Street Journal: Moody's Confirms Aa1 Ratings Of Royal Dutch Shell Entities: “the negative outlook reflects uncertainties”: “Another factor implicit in the negative outlook”

The Wall Street Journal: Moody's Cuts Motiva Enterprises L-T Debt To A2: “The long-term rating downgrade primarily reflects the impact of Moody's downgrade in May 2004 of Motiva's 50% owner, Shell Oil”

The Wall Street Journal: Shell SEC Deal Fails To Solve Governance Issues – Lawyer: “accuses executives and board members of numerous wrongdoings - including breach of fiduciary duty and fraud”

The Wall Street Journal: UK Market Regulator Earns Stripes With Shell Fine: “"The Shell case, by raising the stakes so dramatically for the FSA, is kind of another way of rattling the handcuffs."

The Guardian: British watchdog catches up with US hare: “Shell faces the prospect of a string of civil actions from shareholders who feel duped.”

Financial Times: Victims punished at Shell: “The FSA justifies the fine by saying it has to send a signal to the market about unacceptable behaviour.": 2 August 2004

Financial Times: Lament of the Shell shareholder The penalty is the equivalent to the imposition of a fine on a victim of a robbery rather than on the perpetrator!: 3 August 2004

Reuters: Shell to unify boards: 3 August 2004

Daily Herald: County wants changes from Shell: “illegal dumping of 201 tons of benzene-tainted soil”: "We have found problems with the procedures Shell followed," said county board Chairman Mike McCoy. "It was more than just a simple, honest mistake.": 5 August 2004

The Guardian: Corporate battle lines: "stories of corporate fraud, unbridled greed and negligent auditing, have given much support to the Galbraithian thesis": “How different are the skills required to succeed in, say, Shell, from those needed in the Treasury? (Apart of course from the need in the former case to cultivate a blind eye.)": 7 August 2004

The Independent: Bill Gammell: A £2.2bn Indian summer for rugby international who struck black gold: “And Cairn's success will be all the more satisfying because it came at the expense of the oil giant Shell": 11 August 2004

The New York Times: Gas Traders, Supervisors Face Probe: “commission collected a total of about $250 million in penalties… $30 million from Coral Energy Resources, a Houston-based trading subsidiary of Shell: "11 August 2004

Reuters: Ex-Shell director gets 2.5 million pounds: “Walter van de Vijver": "Former Royal Dutch/Shell director Walter van de Vijver, who resigned after a reserves scandal at the oil giant...":12 August 2004

Financial Times: Shell to unify boards and look at merger: “to restore the company's credibility": 12 August 2004

Pulse TC.com: Firing Shell’s Chairman? “Sir Philip the Finagler after it was discovered in an internal investigation that, on his watch, Shell had been cooking its books Enron-style": 12 August 2004

The Independent: Michael Harrison's Outlook: Money talks for Shell's singing director: “Shell is hardly a byword for good corporate governance, and yesterday it lived up to its reputation by producing another stonker": 13 August 2004

The Times: Shell director who was 'tired of lying' given £2.5m payoff: “Shell investors lost 50p for every barrel that went missing while Phil and Walter together earned 80p for every barrel mislaid": 13 August 2004

DAILY EXPRESS: BUMBLING SHELL BORDERS ON FARCE: “HAPPY memories of Peter Sellers' portrayal of the bumbling Inspector Clouseau": 13 August 2004

Daily Express: Shell scandal boss wins £2.5m payoff": "I am becoming sick and tired about lying about the extent of our reserves issues and the downward revisions that need to be done because of far too aggressive/optimistic bookings.": 13 August 2004

The Star-Ledger: Major shareholder lawsuit pending: “the Royal Dutch/Shell Group's legal woes aren't yet finished.”: “a mega-lawsuit making its way through the U.S. District Court in Newark.": "In the SEC agreement, Shell neither admitted nor denied any wrongdoing, but allowed that the company violated anti-fraud, reporting, bookkeeping and internal control provisions of the securities laws. It will pay about $125 million in penalties. The company will also pay roughly $31 million to cover the British penalties, according to a statement.": 14 August 2004

The Scotsman: Shell 'Braced for Takeover Bid from Oil Rival Total': “an inquiry found it violated reporting, record-keeping and anti-trust rules.": 15 August 2004

SUNDAY EXPRESS: WHY SHELL MUST ACT NOW TO CALM TROUBLED WATERS: “But restructure may not be enough after scandal, resignation and fines, reports Robin Pagnamenta": 15 August 2004

Sunday Express: All’s well with Cairn in the Indian desert: It was an act of stupidity... You don't sell off your golden eggs like that. Shell's loss is Cairn's gain.”: "Oil minnow’s £4m field is worth billions": 15 August 2004

Channel News Asia: Shell fears swoop by French oil giant Total: report: “Shell has been shaken by a scandal involving the overestimation of its reserves of oil and gas.": 16 August 2004

London Evening Standard: Shell in the bid spotlight as oil price keeps climbing: “reports suggested top brass at scandal-struck Shell think a bid may be on its way from France's Total.": 16 August 2004

The Scotsman: Cairn's soar-away success ups pressure on Shell: “The Edinburgh-based group’s astonishing success raises further questions about the quality and calibre of Shell’s management and the company’s modus operandi.": 16 August 2004

Daily Telegraph: Cairn oil bonanza nets chiefs £4m bonus: “Cairn's finds in India are a source of continued embarrassment to Shell, which sold its 50pc share in the concession to Cairn for just $7.25m.": 16 August 2004

Financial Times: Virtually no hiding place from long arm of computer detectives: “…fraud investigation is to turn on a "smoking gun" document…,”: "I am becoming sick and tired about lying about the extent of our reserves issues.": 19 August 2004

Financial Times: Instant messaging used in 'untraceable' City leaks: “follows a string of cases where e-mails have provided crucial evidence, such as when Royal Dutch/Shell disclosed e-mails showing the feud between two of its directors over its overstatement of reserves.": 20 August 2004

Guardian: Corporate battle lines: “The collapse of Enron, and the related and unrelated stories of corporate fraud, unbridled greed and negligent auditing”: “How different are the skills required to succeed in, say, Shell, from those needed in the treasury? (Apart, of course, from the need in the former case to cultivate a blind eye.): 20 August 2004

The Times: Lifers who climb right to the top: “A less edifying example of the breed is Sir Philip Watts, chairman of Shell, who was forced to resign after the group admitted to misrepresenting oil and gas reserves.”": 21 August 2004

Sunday Express: Shell cuts back on forecourts to boost production: “managers hoped the new strategy would draw a line under the reserves-misreporting scandal which triggered the departure of three of Shell's bosses earlier this year.": 22 August 2004

The Business: Shell powers ahead with plan to clear out $15bn of its assets: “Underspending in exploration and production throughout the 1990s is seen as partly to blame for the 4.35bn barrel reduction in reported reserves that made this year one of the worst in Shell's 97-year history.": 22 August 2004

London Evening Standard: Damage question: “Shell… everyone knows its reputation is still in tatters and it will take years for the company to rehabilitate itself.": 22 August 2004

The Times: Need to Know: Royal Dutch/Shell… appeared in a Swedish court again over a 1999 price-fixing cartel": 24 August 2004

Bloomberg: Shell to Update Investors on Governance Next Month: “Van der Veer, 56, is trying to regain investors' confidence after the company said in January it had overstated oil reserves by a fifth. That led to an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the ouster of three top executives and the loss of Shell's top-tier credit rating.": 24 August 2004

Wednesday 25 August, 2004

Financial Times: Shell ‘knew of reserves overstatement in 2000': TWO YEARS EARLIER THAN PREVIOUSLY REPORTED BY THE COMPANY'S OWN INVESTIGATION INTO THE REPORTING SCANDAL."

Financial Times: Lex: Royal Dutch/Shell: “Creating value through entrepreneurial management of hydrocarbon resource values” could be the title of just another jargon-filled memo. The fact that the paper was written at Royal Dutch/Shell in May 1998 and led to a relaxation of reserve guidlines lends it a more ironic slant.": "The findings further damage the oil group's battered reputation."

Lloyds List: Shell settles with regulators to end reserves scandal: “findings and conclusions in the FSA's 'final notice' and the SEC's 'cease and desist order'.”

The Independent: Shell still wrestling with its moment of shame: “Shell is bluntly accused of making false and misleading statements about its oil reserves over a five-year period, of doing so despite internal warnings that the statements were false"

The Independent: Regulators to pursue former Shell chiefs over market abuse: “The UK's market regulator set out in detail a pattern of "false and misleading" information given to the market between 1998 and 2003 which Shell did not start to correct until January this year."

AccountancyAge: Shell committed 'unprecedented misconduct': “This included the false announcements made about the levels of its oil reserves, despite warnings that its figures were 'false or misleading'.”

Fool.com: Shell Shocked?: “If the stink of a recent restatement and high-sulfur gas mixture wasn't enough to have shareholders gasping for air, then the past year's proven oil reserves scandal certainly was.”

The Scotsman: Shell's £82.7M Fines over Reserves Crisis Confirmed: “False or misleading statements were given to investors about the extent of Shell’s reserves as far back as 1998, the FSA said.”

thisislondon.co.uk: Shell oil scandal 'began in 1998': “the FSA said Shell made false and misleading statements between 1998 and 2003.”

CNN: Shell settles fraud case for $150M: Oil company agrees to pay SEC for overstating reserves, also settles market abuse case in Britain.

Acrobat Reader is needed to access the SEC & FSA Report files below. Please be patient when downloading as the files contain multiple pages. (To download a FREE Acrobat Reader click on the adobe link): http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html)

CLICK ON LINK BELOW TO READ SECURITIES & EXCHANGE COMMISSION REPORT: http://www.sec.gov/litigation/admin/34-50233.pdf

CLICK ON THIS LINK TO READ FINANCIAL SERVICES AUTHORITY REPORT: http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pubs/final/shell_24aug04.pdf

PRESS STATEMENT BY FINANCIAL SERVICES AUTHORITY: FSA fines Shell £17,000,000 for market abuse

The Times: FSA exposes long-running deception by Shell executives: “raises questions about the role of senior executives who led Shell in the late 1990s, including Sir Mark Moody-Stuart”

The Times: SHELL shareholders have demanded that more heads roll at the world’s third-largest oil company to regain investor confidence.: “The people who are in charge of Shell today ... were there when these activities were going on and are still involved at the highest level..."

The Times: Pressing questions: “Can Shell rebuild its reputation?”: “Is Shell a takeover play?”: “Why did the auditors not resign when they questioned the booking of gas reserves in 1998?”:  “Should they resign now?”

Daily Telegraph: Shell takes mauling over 'market abuse': “Shell was yesterday savaged by regulators in Britain and America for "unprecedented misconduct": ‘The FSA said Shell "disseminated false or misleading information as to the true extent of its proved reserves" from 1998 until last July.'

The Guardian: Solitary part-timer conducted group audit:  “The FSA makes clear that Shell's reserves difficulties began in 1997”

The Guardian: Shell's shame: FSA spells out abuse: “Fadel Gheit, an oil analyst at broker Oppenheimer & Co in New York, said the latest revelations from the regulators proved this was a corporate scandal of "historic proportions". He added: "Short of Enron... I have not seen anything like this in 30 years of covering the market."

The Guardian: Damned in detail - but let off lightly: Shell faced far higher penalty in the US: The Financial Services Authority's judgment of the Shell reserves scandal is damning both in detail and conclusion, accusing the company of "unprecedented misconduct".

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: SEC Order Shows Many Involved In Shell Reserves Debacle: “administrative order confirms that the scandal touched many officials beyond the senior executives who have left the company”

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: SEC, FSA Fine Shell For Reserves Overstatements: "The SEC can still bring civil charges against individuals. Prosecutors at the U.S. Justice Department - who can bring criminal and civil charges - are continuing their own probe into the reserves issue"

Houston Chronicle: Probe aims at top: Investigators say Royal Dutch-Shell officials in sights

Investors.com: Royal Dutch/Shell Fined $120 Million, Lives On to Overstate Another Day: “It is the third largest for the SEC, after WorldCom Inc…”

The New York Times: Shell Settles Oil Reserve Fraud Case for $150.7 Million:  Degenhardt added that the overstatements had occurred ``over an extended period.''

The Times: An auditor of no account: “the horror story that has emerged from Shell”: “determination to present the City with inflated numbers…widespread": "when the company, under the leadership of SIR MARK MOODY-STUART, established five Value Creation Teams, it was certainly looking for creativity. That a paper of May 1998 could have been entitled 'Creating Value through Entrepreneurial Management of Hydrocarbon Resource Values' is an eloquent indication of what was to follow"

Daily Mail: Shocking rebuke stings Shell: “Officials are said to have found Shell's behaviour particularly appalling given the fact that the Anglo-Dutch giant had appeared a pillar of respectability.”

London Evening Standard: Shell scandal 'could be repeated’: “Findings by regulators have widened the scandal by accusing Shell of giving false reserve figures from 1998 to 2003, raising questions about the role of executives, including SIR MARK MOODY-STUART"

The Scotsman: Fresh probe into Shell oil reserves scandal: Watchdogs to target ‘those responsible’

ShellNews.net: The Shell Chairman responsible for Shell’s descent into cover-up, scandal and shame on an epic scale - Sir Mark Moody-Stuart

London Evening Standard: Shell faces £830m Nigeria claim: “The FSA's conclusions will raise questions about the part played by Watts' predecessor, SIR MARK MOODY-STUART, chairman between 1997 and 2001.

Forbes: Nigerian Senate Orders Shell Unit to Pay: “Nigeria's Senate has ordered a subsidiary of petroleum giant Royal/Dutch Shell to pay a Nigerian ethnic group US$1.5 billion… for oil spills in their homelands”

Forbes: Shell to Spend More on North Sea Venture: Shell has acknowledged that the overstatement of reserves and "inappropriate" accounting in other business areas resulted in profits being inflated by US$432 million.

Los Angeles Times: Shell Increases 2004 Spending in Europe: “The alleged role of individuals in the scandal remains under investigation by the SEC, and Shell also faces a separate probe by the U.S. Justice Department.”

Thursday 26 August, 2004

The Independent: Shell hit by $1.5bn oil pollution claim from Nigerian Senate: “Shell was linked by international campaigners to the military government of Sani Abacha, which executed a delta activist, Ken Saro-Wiwa.”

ShellNews.net: Sir Mark Moody-Stuart - The Shell Chairman responsible for Shell’s descent into cover-up, scandal and shame on an epic scale

The Times: The misreporting scandal: Shell penalties 'bolster' “BILLION-DOLLAR” class action lawsuits: “A source close to the SEC told The Times last night that a list of questions had been sent to all Shell executives involved in the inquiry. It is understood that those questions have been passed to, among others, SIR MARK MOODY-STUART..."

Financial Times: Regulators dig deeper into Royal Dutch/Shell's problems: “The SEC is scathing about Shell's advice to investors that it had changed its mathematics, saying in its 1998 annual report only that estimation methods "have been refined".

The Times: Shareholders could be damaged beyond repair: “Several lawyers specialising in class actions on behalf of aggrieved investors are circling the Anglo-Dutch group, which is well within the orbit of American law.”

The Guardian: Shell hit by $1.5bn Nigeria spill claim Senate: action on pollution adds to damage from reserves scandal

Friday 27 August, 2004

Financial Times: Governance: Managers look for the moral dimension: “Post-Enron, post-Shell, post-WorldCom, post-Parmalat”

The Independent: Oil companies must be made to follow UN on human rights: “Shell and BP the leaders in building a human rights responsibility into their business principles and recognising that explicit adherence to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights"

Saturday 28 August, 2004

Daily Telegraph: The landslide bringing down Shell grandees: “The SEC and FSA reports, however, go back to the previous regime, when Sir Mark Moody-Stuart was chairman.”: "The Shell Show, a tragicomedy in an unlimited number of parts..."

The Times: “FSA’s report accuses Shell of market abuse by announcing false oil reserves between 1998 and 2003, implicating several major executives in the scandal, including Sir Mark Moody-Stuart”

Financial Times: Shell-shocked: “Shell was found to have "announced false or misleading reserves and reserves replacement ratios throughout the period 1998 to 2003"…: “three heads have rolled… other people in key positions during that time remain. They include Jeroen van der Veer… and Sir Mark Moody-Stuart”

Financial Times: Buoyant E&P sector “Shell has a particular problem at the moment. It is running out of oil in the ground and has lost a chairman and faced public humiliation following surprise cuts in its oil reserve estimates earlier this year.”

The Guardian: He's no Hector: David Varney, executive chairman of Revenue and Customs: “Varney admits to being "very concerned" about seeing Shell immersed in a reserves scandal.”

Daily Mail: Alarm at former Shell chiefs' options: “Pirc says Watts could make £3.1m if the shares reach 552p”: “Regulators are still investigating those believed to have had a role in the company's reserves scandal.”

Sunday 29 August, 2004

Sunday Telegraph: Shell's auditors in firing line as US lawyers prepare class action: “Shell had ignored internal warnings for several years that it was overstating its reserves"

Sunday Telegraph: Shell in Hell

The Observer: We all pay price for murky gas market: “Shell's £84 million fine for falsifying its gas and oil reserve statements”

THE BUSINESS: Regulators must bring Shell directors to book: “a deliberate attempt by Shell, over a number of years, not just a few months, to overstate their oil and gas reserves.”

Daily Express: FAT CATS REWARD: SIR PHILIP Watts: His deputy, Dutchman Walter van der Vijver, repeatedly warned him of the overstatement and finally exploded in an angry e-mail last November that he was "sick and tired of lying about the extent of our reserves".

Sunday Times: Shell plans bonus to rally workforce: “some staff in the exploration and production division had oil-reserves replacement as one of the targets that determined their pay.”

The Scotsman: Concerns over potential £3m windfall: “Ensuing investigations by the US Securities and Exchanges Commission and the UK Financial Services Authority revealed that the oil major had been over-inflating its reserves since 1998, implicating the company’s top management in the scandal.”

Stuff.co.nz: Oil finds fuel shareholders' bid against Shell: “to press their long-running $23 million insider trading case against Shell.”: “The High Court has already ruled the small shareholders had a case to take against Shell. That decision was upheld by the Appeal Court.”

Monday 30 August, 2004 (UK BANK HOLIDAY)

The Scotsman: Shell knew of error in reserves in 1998: “AUDITORS at Royal Dutch/Shell, the British-Dutch energy group, warned the company as early as 1998 that its reserves figures may have been overstated…”

The Scotsman: Auditors dragged into Shell lawsuit: “role of auditors KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers in the scandal that wiped £2.9 billion off Shell’s market capitalisation in one day.”

Daily Telegraph: Shell will abolish 'discovery bonus' “Crisis-hit Shell is scrapping a controversial scheme which links staff pay levels to the amount of oil and gas employees find.”: “latest attempt by Shell to restore its reputation”

The Times: Shell boss pours oil on troubled water: “the scathing reports, in which the FSA accused Shell of announcing false oil-reserve figures since as far back as 1998 again drove investors to rage that not enough was being done to restore credibility.”

The Guardian: £17m Shell shock was just an early broadside in FSA war on abuse: “Shell's action was made more serious because false or misleading announcements on reserves were made from 1998 to 2003. Even though Shell had indications and warnings from 2000 to 2003 that figures for proved reserves were incorrect, its actions continued.”

Financial Times: Royal Dutch/Shell to revise staff bonus scheme: “The scandal prompted the resignation of three senior executives, investigations by US, UK and Dutch regulators, a criminal probe by the US Department of Justice and investor lawsuits.”

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Shell Plans Team Performance Bonus Scheme From January: “intended to help rebuild the company's credibility.”

Planet Ark: Russian Oil Project to Be Vetted for Whale Threat: “the International Whaling Commission last month warned energy exploration could kill off the 100 or so remaining gray whales on the oil-rich shelf near Russia's Pacific coast”

Tuesday 31 August, 2004

Daily Telegraph: Boards beware: the road to Shell was paved with 'good' intentions: “This being Shell, everything was systematic, and was approved at the highest level, and had been going on for years.”: “On top of all this comes the loss to Shell's reputation - its ultimate hidden reserve.”: “It will have to be rebuilt and earned, and that takes time, if it can be done at all.

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Shell Sheds Refineries, Gas Stations: “Even after this year's headline-grabbing scandal over its oil reserves, most people still best know Anglo-Dutch oil company Royal Dutch/Shell Group by the scallop-shell logo”: “a lot fewer people will be seeing this iconic emblem in the future”

The Scotsman.com: Shell Abandons 'Self First' Bonus Culture: "Shell was found by the Financial Services Authority in the UK and the Securities and Exchange Commission in the US to have committed market abuse and breached listing rules by misleading the market over the extent of its reserves."

FILE CURRENTLY ENDS AT END OF AUGUST 2004

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