Financial Times: Good to be good
By Clay Harris
Jun 11, 2004
Jeroen van der Veer puts the kibosh on any idea that Royal Dutch/Shell's commitment to sustainable development is an "unnecessary distraction" in the wake of criticism over the reserves fiasco.
The chairman of the oil and gas group's committee of managing directors argues that, on the contrary, sustainable development "will play an important part in rebuilding trust, managing risk and delivering . . . strong business performance".
Van der Veer's remarks come in the latest edition of the Shell Report, an annual accounting of its good social and environmental deeds. Why does one's attention wander to the slightly off-message boasts such as that every four seconds, an aircraft is refuelled by Shell Aviation and 1,200 cars visit a Shell station?