Royal

Even though it has found no evidence of impropriety on its part, Royal Dutch Shell affiliate Coral Energy said it has implemented new procedures to shield itself from any misunderstandings or abuses that may occur when reporting prices on natural gas trades to energy trade publications.

Three of the largest oil and gas companies in the world, Exxon Mobil (XOM), ChevronTexaco and Royal Dutch/Shell Group, posted third quarter earnings Thursday, with both Exxon and Shell reporting encouraging production results. Meanwhile, ChevronTexaco was blasted off its track with more than $2 billion in charges, including a $1.55 billion write-down against Dynegy Inc., in which it is a 26.5% shareholder (see related story). Meanwhile, independents’ quarterly earnings also are coming in, including Anadarko Petroleum Corp., which upped its fourth quarter and year-end earnings on stronger-than-expected results.

Royal Dutch/Shell, Exxon Mobil Corp., ChevronTexaco, Burlington Resources Inc. Petrobras and Schlumberger are but a few of the 75 foreign companies that have expressed an interest in the long-term natural gas production contracts officially unveiled by Mexico’s state-run oil monopoly last week. The first agreements are expected to be offered in November, officials said (see NGI, June 17).

Royal Dutch/Shell Group last week agreed to buy the British-based Enterprise Oil Plc in a cash deal worth $5 billion, which would be a 15% premium to Enterprise’s closing share price March 29. Enterprise would add about 6% to Shell’s output and boost its presence in the North Sea, Italy, Brazil and the Gulf of Mexico, which has been an emerging frontier for the independent. Overall, Enterprise produced almost 243,000 boe/d in 2001.

Royal Dutch/Shell Group’s third quarter profit fell for the first time in more than two years, dropping 17% on lower energy prices and lower demand for chemicals. Net income, excluding one-time charges, fell to $2.69 billion from $3.25 billion for the third quarter of 2000. Shell hasn’t had a quarterly decline in profit since the first quarter of 1999 and the company said the outlook remains weak because of the economic slowdown, especially in the United States.

Royal Dutch/Shell Group’s third quarter profit fell for the first time in more than two years, dropping 17% on lower energy prices and lower demand for chemicals. Net income, excluding one-time charges, fell to $2.69 billion from $3.25 billion for the third quarter of 2000. Shell hasn’t had a quarterly decline in profit since the first quarter of 1999 and the company said the outlook remains weak because of the economic slowdown, especially in the United States.

In a deal that paved the way for the Chevron-Texaco merger to be completed last week, Royal Dutch/Shell Group signed a $3.8 billion agreement to buy out Texaco’s two oil refining and marketing joint ventures, making Shell the largest U.S. gasoline refiner with nearly a 15% market share. The sale of Texaco’s joint ventures was confirmed on the last day before the assets were due to go into a trust to allow completion of the Chevron Texaco combination, as specified by the Federal Trade Commission. The $39 billion merger gained approval Tuesday from shareholders of both companies and was completed shortly after the shareholders voted.

In a deal that paves the way for the Chevron-Texaco merger to be completed, Royal Dutch/Shell Group signed a $3.8 billion agreement to buy out Texaco’s two oil refining and marketing joint ventures, making Shell the largest U.S. gasoline refiner with nearly a 15% market share. The sale of Texaco’s joint ventures was confirmed on the last day before the assets were due to go into a trust to allow completion of the Chevron Texaco combination, as specified by the Federal Trade Commission. The $39 billion merger also gained approval Tuesday from shareholders of both companies.

Joining a growing list of companies lowering their forecasts, Royal Dutch/Shell Group, the second largest oil company in the world, has reduced its production growth estimate to 3% a year, down from the 5% a year it had targeted in 1998. The reduction applies to targets set through 2005.