Shell Share Discussion Threads

[waldron] 08/1/2022 14:07

Date: Thursday, 03 February 2022

Event title: Q4 2021 Results

[adrian j boris] 08/1/2022 12:13

Royal Dutch Shell (UK) - Simplification of Share Structure

Informative Notice

07 January 2022

FTSE Russell notes the announcement of the timetable by Royal Dutch Shell in relation to the simplification of its share structure, whereby each share of Royal Dutch Shell A (UK, B03MLX2, FTSE 100 Index, GEIS Large Cap) and Royal Dutch Shell B (UK, B03MM40, FTSE 100 Index, GEIS Large Cap) will be assimilated into a single line of Shell Plc (UK, BP6MXD8). Shell Plc will be incorporated and tax resident in the UK.

Based on the current expected timetable, FTSE Russell anticipates the following treatment:

Friday 28 January 2022:

The last day of trading of the A and B shares.

Monday 31 January 2022 (from market open):

The simplified Shell Plc line will commence trading with the current A line being retained within its existing FTSE Russell indices, with its shares being updated to incorporate the simplification terms. This will be implemented with updates to the A line's name, codes, tax treatment, shares in issue, and its investability weight.

The B line security will be removed from all FTSE Russell indices.

The index changes will be implemented using market prices (i.e. using the close prices from Friday 28 January 2022). FTSE Russell will release further index notices in due course.

Please note: Following the effective date, there will be no withholding tax levied on dividends distributed by the UK tax resident company, this will result in no difference applied within the FTSE Total Return Indices and FTSE Total Return Declared Dividend Indices, please refer to the 17 November 2021 notice for further detail.

[adrian j boris] 08/1/2022 00:29

Shell’s Gas Trading Booms While Oil Trading Slows

By Tsvetana Paraskova - Jan 07, 2022, 11:00 AM CST

Shell expects very strong Q4 results from gas trading division

Shell expects its oil products trading and optimization results to be significantly lower than the third quarter of 2021

Shell is set to publish its Q4 results on February 3, 2022


Shell expects the trading results of its gas division to have been significantly higher in the fourth quarter of 2021 compared to the third quarter, on the back of high natural gas and LNG spot prices, the supermajor said in its fourth quarter 2021 update note on Friday.

At the same time, Shell expects its oil products trading and optimization results to be significantly lower than the third quarter of 2021. Adjusted earnings at the refining and trading division are expected to be negative despite higher indicative refining margins, an approximation of Shell’s global net realized refining margin, the company said.

Shell issued the update note ahead of the publishing of the Q4 2021 results scheduled for February 3, 2022.

In today’s note ahead of the earnings release, Shell said it would distribute the remaining $5.5 billion of proceeds from the sale of its Permian assets “in the form of share buybacks at pace.”

Shell announced in September its exit from the Permian with a divestment of its assets in the shale play to ConocoPhillips for a total price of $9.5 billion.

“After reviewing multiple strategies and portfolio options for our Permian assets, this transaction with ConocoPhillips emerged as a very compelling value proposition,” said Wael Sawan, Upstream Director at Shell.

“The Permian related distributions are in addition to the distributions of 20-30% of cash flow from operations as per our existing capital allocation framework,” Shell said today.

The decision for the Permian-related buybacks was taken on December 31, 2021, during the first Board meeting held in the UK following the decision to implement the simplification of the company’s share structure.

At the end of last year, Shell proposed to shareholders, and they overwhelmingly voted in favor of, a plan to drop the dual share structure and ‘Royal Dutch’ from the name, move its tax residence to the UK from the Netherlands, and make its share structure simpler for investors to value and understand.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

[waldron] 07/1/2022 16:42

Shell 4Q Update Is Below Market Expectations, ING Says

0857 GMT - Shell's update for the fourth quarter of 2021 is below market expectations, ING says, adding that the company won't reach its $6.3 billion adjusted earnings forecast for the quarter. This reflects the fact that Chemicals is expected to deliver break-even earnings, weaker results in Oil Products, and Integrated Gas production halts in Australia. However, it is difficult to know to what extent shares will move on these numbers, given that the company confirmed another $5.5 billion share buyback and Brent oil prices have risen above $80, ING says. "Our Hold with a TP of EUR20.50 stands as we believe all good news of RDS is discounted in the current share price," the Dutch bank says.

---

Shell 4Q Update Is Neutral to Market Expectations

0817 GMT - Shell's trading update for the fourth quarter is neutral to consensus expectations and slightly worse than prior guidance, with multiple figures now at the low end of what was previously guided, Biraj Borkhataria of RBC Capital Markets says. The analysts highlights that LNG volumes are lower than expected, as operational issues hurt production, and that Shell has confirmed it will distribute the remaining $5.5 billion of proceeds from the Permian sale via buybacks at pace. Shares in the oil-and-gas major slip 0.3%.



Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires; Write to Sarka Halas at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 07, 2022 09:00 ET (14:00 GMT)

[waldron] 07/1/2022 14:55

INVEZZ


Shell share price forecast: Cheap RDSB could surge ahead

By: Crispus Nyaga
on Jan 7, 2022

The Shell share price has started the year well.

It has risen by about 12% from its December lows.

The stock could keep rising in light of the $5.5 billion buybacks.

The Royal Dutch Shell (LON: RDSB) share price rose to the highest level since October last year. It is trading at 1,722p, which is about 12% above the lowest level in December. Other oil and gas stocks like BP and ExxonMobil have also done well.


Shell buybacks

The Shell share price has done well, supported by the relatively high crude oil and natural gas prices. The price of crude oil has jumped this year as investors downplay the impact of the Omicron variant to the global economy. Recent data shows that the variant is relatively milder than the previous variants.



The stock is also doing well after the company unveiled its plan to return funds to shareholders. It will buy back stock worth $5.5 billion using the funds it raised after selling its Permian Basin operations to ConocoPhillips.

These distributions will be in addition to the existing buyback plan that involves repurchasing stock using between 20% and 30% of its total cash flow.

In a statement, the company said that it will report between 910k and 950k barrels of oil per day for the fourth quarter and about 7.7 million to 8.3 million mt/day of LNG.

This guidance was lower than the previous one.

Analysts are optimistic about the Shell share price because of the rising demand and the fact that oil and gas prices have been stable.

The company is also taking actions to reduce costs.

For example, last year, the company said that it will shift its headquarters from the Netherlands to London.

In a recent article, Barron’s mentioned Shell as one of its picks for the year.

They cited the company’s discount to its American rivals and the fact that it is a leading gas producer.

Natural gas prices have been in a strong bullish trend lately.


On the daily chart, we see that the RDSB share price crossed a key resistance level this week. The stock managed to move above the key level at 1,705, which was the highest level on December 7th.

It also jumped above the 25-day moving average and is slowly approaching its highest level in 2021. The MACD has also moved above the neutral level.

Therefore, the stock will likely keep rising as bulls target the key resistance at 1,850p. This view will be invalidated if the stock crashes below 1,600p.

[grupo guitarlumber] 07/1/2022 11:00

Royal Dutch Shell plc Shell Fourth Quarter 2021 Update Note
07/01/2022 7:00am
UK Regulatory (RNS & others)

Royal Dutch Shell (LSE:RDSB)
Intraday Stock Chart


Friday 7 January 2022
Click Here for more Royal Dutch Shell Charts.


TIDMRDSA TIDMRDSB


The following is an update to the fourth quarter 2021 outlook. Impacts presented may vary from the actual results and are subject to finalisation of the fourth quarter 2021 results, published on February 3, 2022. Unless otherwise indicated, all outlook statements exclude identified items.

The remaining $5.5 billion of proceeds from the Permian divestment will be distributed in the form of share buybacks at pace. This decision was taken on December 31, 2021, at the first Board meeting held in the UK following the decision to implement the simplification of the company's share structure.

The Permian related distributions are in addition to the distributions of 20-30% of cash flow from operations as per our existing capital allocation framework. Further details of the amount and pace of total shareholder distributions will be disclosed at the fourth quarter results announcement.

[waldron] 07/1/2022 09:21

Royal Dutch Shell PLC said Friday that it will distribute the remaining $5.5 billion of proceeds from the sale of its Permian Basin assets in the U.S. through share buybacks.

The oil-and-gas major said this is in addition to the ordinary distributions of 20%-30% of cash flow from operations.

Meanwhile, Shell warned that production from its integrated gas division was hurt by unplanned maintenance in the fourth quarter of 2021. The company expects to report daily production of 910,000-950,000 barrels of oil equivalent and liquefied natural gas volumes of 7.7-8.3 million metric tons, which would be lower than guidance of 940,000-980,000 barrels and 8.0-8.6 million metric tons.

On the positive side, trading profits from Integrated Gas jumped quarter-on-quarter, as Shell benefited from soaring liquefied natural gas spot prices.

Upstream production is expected to have averaged between 2.15 and 2.25 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, within the guidance range.

In addition, oil products marketing results are expected to have worsened, with trading performance significantly below the third quarter. Sales volumes of between 4.0 and 5.0 million barrels a day would be below previous guidance of 4.2-5.2 million. Refinery utilization is within previous guidance.

Chemicals margins and manufacturing plant utilization also fell in the three months ended Dec. 31 compared with the previous quarter. Sales volumes are seen at 3.3-3.6 million metric tons, below previous expectations of 3.5-3.9 million.



Write to Jaime Llinares Taboada at [e-mail]; @JaimeLlinaresT



(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 07, 2022 02:53 ET (07:53 GMT)

[waldron] 06/1/2022 09:44

SHELL A : RBC gives a Buy rating
01/06/2022 | 08:20am GMT


Already positive, the research from RBC and its analyst Biraj Borkhataria still consider the stock as a Buy opportunity. The target price is unchanged at GBX 2500.

[sarkasm] 31/12/2021 17:02

[United Kingdom] ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC (RDSA)

Delayed Quote. Delayed London Stock Exchange - 12/31 12:35:08 pm

1621.8 GBX +0.17%

[secretsqu] 21/12/2021 22:28

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[piperpeter] 21/12/2021 22:06

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Any PPC purchase (over 169 shares) up to 29 December will qualify for the dividend.

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[waldron] 20/12/2021 14:47

Royal Dutch Shell PLC said Monday that it has decided to proceed with simplifying its share structure, shifting its tax residence to the U.K., and it will change its name to Shell PLC in January.

The energy company said it expects to change its name in the week beginning Jan. 24.

Shareholders in the company approved the amendment of the group's articles of association on Dec. 10, after Shell proposed in November to collapse its current dual-share class and move its tax residency to the U.K. from the Netherlands.

Since its unification in 2005, the oil-and-gas company has been incorporated in the U.K. with Dutch tax residence and an A/B dual share structure.

"The board believes that the simplification will strengthen Shell's competitiveness and accelerate both shareholder distributions and delivery of its strategy to become a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050, in step with society," Chairman Andrew Mackenzie said previously.



Write to Joe Hoppe at [e-mail]



(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 20, 2021 09:29 ET (14:29 GMT)

[ariane] 20/12/2021 10:49

TotalEnergies Expands In Key Growth Area With Double Win In Brazil
by Bojan Lepic
|
Rigzone Staff
|
Monday, December 20, 2021


TotalEnergies has further expanded its presence in Brazil, a ‘key growth area’ for the French energy major, by winning stakes in two pre-salt oil fields.

Total Energies was awarded stakes in the Atapu and Sépia pre-salt oil fields offered by Brazil’s National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas, and Biofuels (ANP) in the Transfer of Rights Surplus Bidding Round.

The French firm won a 22.5 percent interest in Atapu alongside Shell – its partner in the field – which will hold 25 percent, and operator Petrobras with a 52.5 percent stake.

The Atapu field is a pre-salt oil field in the Santos Basin, located in water depths of about 6,500 feet. Production started in 2020 and has reached a plateau of 160,000 barrels per day with a first floating, production, storage, and offloading vessel (FPSO).

A second FPSO is planned to be sanctioned, which would increase the overall oil production of the field to around 350,000 barrels per day.

The other win for total is the Sépia field, also located in the Santos Basin. There, TotalEnergies now holds a 28 percent interest. The two partners, apart from operator Petrobras with its 30 percent stake, are QatarEnergy with 21 percent, and Petronas with 21 percent.

Production started in 2021 and is targeting a plateau of 180,000 barrels per day with a first floating, production, storage, and offloading unit (FPSO). A second FPSO is planned to be sanctioned, which would increase the overall oil production of the field to around 350,000 barrels per day.

“With the successful bids on Atapu and Sépia, TotalEnergies further expands its footprint and production in the pre-salt Santos Basin, a key growth area for the company. These are unique opportunities to access giant low-cost and low emissions oil reserves, in line with TotalEnergies' new strategy,” said Patrick Pouyanne, Chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies.

“These assets benefit from world-leading well productivities to keep costs well below 20 $/boe. They also leverage technological innovations to limit greenhouse gas emissions to well below 20 kg/boe. Growing our presence in Brazil will enable us to accelerate the restructuring of our oil portfolio towards low-cost and low emissions hydrocarbon resources that will contribute to transforming TotalEnergies to a sustainable multi-energy company,” he added.

“Moreover, TotalEnergies, through its subsidiary Total Eren, pursues its growth in renewables in Brazil with already a capacity of 300 MW,” Pouyanne concluded.

With these two wins, TotalEnergies production in Brazil will increase from the effective date of the PSC planned by end of April 2022, with 30,000 boe/d in 2022 growing to 50,000 boe/d from 2023.

It is worth noting that Atapu and Sepia are part of an area estimated to hold as much as 15 billion barrels of recoverable crude and are located in an area that already produces oil. Petrobras is producing from a block bordering Sepia while Total, Galp, and Shell are partnering with the Brazilian giant in a block bordering Atapu.

[capitol2] 06/12/2021 12:08

Big money moving into gdr after wording of past weeks rns on new high speed covid test.

[grupo guitarlumber] 06/12/2021 08:39

The Hague, December 6, 2021 - The Board of Royal Dutch Shell plc ("RDS") today announced the pounds sterling and euro equivalent dividend payments in respect of the third quarter 2021 interim dividend, which was announced on October 28, 2021 at US$0.24 per A ordinary share ("A Share") and B ordinary share ("B Share").

Dividends on A Shares will be paid, by default, in euros at the rate of EUR0.2121per A Share. Holders of A Shares who have validly submitted US dollars or pounds sterling currency elections by November 26, 2021 will be entitled to a dividend of US$0.24 or 18.06p per A Share, respectively.

Dividends on B Shares will be paid, by default, in pounds sterling at the rate of 18.06p per B Share. Holders of B Shares who have validly submitted US dollars or euros currency elections by November 26, 2021 will be entitled to a dividend of US$0.24 or EUR0.2121per B Share, respectively.

Euro and pounds sterling dividends payable in cash have been converted from US dollars based on an average of market exchange rates over the three dealing days from 1 December to 3 December 2021.

This dividend will be payable on December 20, 2021 to those members whose names were on the Register of Members on November 12, 2021.

Taxation - cash dividend

Cash dividends on A Shares will be subject to the deduction of Dutch dividend withholding tax at the rate of 15%, which may be reduced in certain circumstances. Non-Dutch resident shareholders, depending on their particular circumstances, may be entitled to a full or partial refund of Dutch dividend withholding tax.

If you are uncertain as to the tax treatment of any dividends you should consult your tax advisor.

Note

A different currency election date may apply to shareholders holding shares in a securities account with a bank or financial institution ultimately holding through Euroclear Nederland. This may also apply to other shareholders who do not hold their shares either directly on the Register of Members or in the corporate sponsored nominee arrangement. Shareholders can contact their broker, financial intermediary, bank or financial institution for the election deadline that applies.

[waldron] 06/12/2021 06:05

While Shell Resists Breakup, Rivals See Opportunity From Spinoffs

Italy's Eni and other European energy conglomerates are spinning off parts of their low-carbon energy assets or considering such moves to boost returns

published : 6 Dec 2021 at 04:30


writer: Ben Dummett


THE WALLSTREET JOURNAL



Royal Dutch Shell PLC is standing firm against Third Point LLC's call for a breakup of the oil giant to retain and attract investors. But that isn't stopping Eni SpA and other European energy conglomerates from targeting similar moves to boost shareholder returns.

Shell has defended its integrated strategy by saying its legacy oil-and-gas assets are needed to fund its investments in lower-carbon energy.

But Daniel Loeb's Third Point says the structure is too unwieldy to value Shell.

Instead, the U.S.-based activist suggests the company, which plans to consolidate its dual British and Dutch structure and relocate its headquarters to London, should consider separating its legacy operations from its renewables investments to boost returns and accelerate carbon-dioxide-emission reductions.

The standoff shows the challenges energy companies face maintaining their record of dividend payouts while managing the more recent pressures of reaping full value for their increasing investments in green energy.

Eni's solution: spinning off a minority stake of its retail energy and renewables business next year through an initial public offering.

The move isn't as extreme as the breakup Third Point is pushing for at Shell, but the aims are similar: Simplify the company's structure, in this case, to attract a higher valuation and a lower cost of capital. That will allow the spun-off company to raise money more cheaply to expand the alternative energy business as more investors bet on growing demand for low-carbon assets over fossil fuels like oil and gas.

Analysts and investors say it is too early to know if Eni's IPO strategy will succeed over the longer term. It has paid off so far, with the stock outperforming Shell and other European rivals BP PLC and TotalEnergies SE since the plan's approval in October.

The move by Rome-based Eni "is a potential experiment for the rest of the sector, and if investors are receptive, we expect others to follow suit in the coming months and years," said Biraj Borkhataria, a London-based analyst at RBC Capital Markets.

Spain's Repsol SA is another major oil producer considering splitting out its low-carbon assets, and it is expected to make a decision next year. Spanish electricity utility Iberdrola SA in July indicated it may list part of its offshore wind-farm business in an IPO.

Eni's renewables business oversees a network of wind-farm and solar-power projects across parts of Europe, the U.S., Asia, Australia and Africa. The company aims to expand its installed capacity of renewable energy to 60 gigawatts in 2050 from 1 gigawatt last year.

That business's potential value suffers because it is dwarfed by the company's lower-growth traditional oil-and-gas business, measured by operating profit.

Eni's enterprise value trades at 3.5 times to its estimated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, according to S&P Capital IQ. By comparison, Denmark-based wind-farm operator Oersted A/S and U.S. alternative energy giant NextEra Energy Inc. each trade around 16 times that profit measurement.

Eni didn't disclose a valuation target for the new business when it detailed financial forecasts for the new company on Nov. 22.

Eni's shares have risen 3.6% since the IPO announcement, while Shell's have declined 1.3%, France's TotalEnergies has slipped 0.8% and BP is 1.2% lower.

The recent outperformance of Eni's shares relative to its peers shows that the spinoff plan has played a central role in the stock's strength, said Giacomo Romeo, an analyst at Jefferies International.

Spanish infrastructure and energy company Acciona SA has already demonstrated some of the benefits of a spinoff. In July, it listed a minority stake of its business that builds and operates wind- and solar-power projects. Corporacion Acciona Energias Renovables SA trades near 25 times its projected earnings estimates, above the parent company's multiple of 22 times.

By spinning off low-carbon assets, integrated energy companies create businesses that can appeal to institutional investors like the Ford Foundation and Dutch pension fund Horeca & Catering. These institutions are part of a growing number that are ending investments in fossil fuels or selling assets to help reduce global warming.

In September, Horeca & Catering sold out of its €250 million, equivalent to $283 million, worth of fossil-fuel stocks including Eni, Shell, BP and Exxon Mobil Corp.

The fund, which oversees €16 billion in assets, would still be allowed to consider investing in Eni's low-carbon business following its spinout into a separate publicly traded company. That assumes any revenue from oil and gas was less than 50% of the total, said Bas van Ooijen, a senior investment manager at the fund.

The Ford Foundation said a month later it planned to end fossil-fuel investments and that the move could undermine future returns. Horeca & Catering said its analysis shows no significant difference in its overall returns over the long term whether oil-and-gas stocks were included or excluded from its portfolio.

"There will be more cases where [integrated] companies will see an issue between what independent [alternative energy] players are valued at and the value of their low-carbon assets, especially as these businesses grow,'' said Mr. Romeo, the analyst at Jefferies.

[waldron] 02/12/2021 19:38

S and P GLOBAL Platts

Shell cancels flagship 500 mil-barrel UK Cambo project after backlash
Highlights

Shell cites economic considerations, likelihood of delay

Scottish leader had opposed flagship UK oil project

UK put offshore licensing on hold pending COP26 climate talks

Author
Nick Coleman
Editor
Adithya Ram
Commodity
Natural Gas, Oil

Shell said Dec. 2 that it was cancelling its plans for the 500 million-barrel Cambo oil project in the UK West of Shetland area following a barrage of criticism including from Scottish leaders, saying the economics of the project were insufficiently strong and that it was worried about delays.


In a statement, Shell reaffirmed its commitment to the North Sea industry, home to the Dated Brent benchmark and a key source of non-OPEC production, but said the case for the investment was "not strong enough at this time."

Shell holds only a 30% stake in Cambo, alongside independent Siccar Point Energy, but its decision is likely to prove decisive for the future of the project and be seen as a warning for those considering other major oil developments, particularly in the high-cost West of Shetland area.

The decision comes after the project is thought to have been delayed by the UK's hosting of COP26 climate talks in November, and after Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she did not believe Cambo should go ahead. The project was described by some as a "lightning rod" for environmental criticism of the oil and gas industry in the UK.

In 2020, the UK suspended further offshore licensing pending a review of the process to ensure its compatibility with the country's climate goals, with no sign of a resumption yet taking place.

Shell also suffered a knock-back in recent weeks when its proposal for the Jackdaw gas and condensate project was rejected by an environmental regulator.

"Before taking investment decisions on any project, we conduct detailed assessments to ensure the best returns for the business and our shareholders. After comprehensive screening of the proposed Cambo development, we have concluded the economic case for investment in this project is not strong enough at this time, as well as having the potential for delays," Shell said in the statement.

"Continued investment in oil and gas in the UK remains critical to the country's energy security. As Shell works to help accelerate the transition to low-carbon energy, we remain committed to supplying UK customers with the fuels they still rely on, including oil and gas."

"We believe the North Sea -- and Shell in it -- have a critical role to play in the UK's energy mix, supporting the jobs and skills to enable a smooth transition to Britain's low-carbon future," it added.

UK oil production was down 19% over the first eight months of 2021 at less than 900,000 b/d, partly on the back of the pandemic. S&P Global Platts Analytics expects a slight recovery in 2022, before a decline to around 550,000 b/d by 2030.

Shell is one of UK's largest oil and gas producers, with an offshore portfolio weighted toward oil production, which amounted to 72% of upstream output for the company in 2020.

[waldron] 02/12/2021 17:42

OpenSecrets homepage


Millions in lobbying spending pour into fight over sanctions on Russia’s Nord Stream 2 oil pipeline

By Anna Massoglia

December 2, 2021 11:31 am


Debate over Russia’s Nord Stream 2 oil pipeline has complicated efforts to pass the National Defense Authorization Act after millions of dollars have been spent on federal lobbying opposing sanctions on the Russian pipeline.

Nord Stream 2 AG took center stage in the Senate negotiations after a vote to end debate on the NDAA funding bill failed on Monday with a vote of 45-51, short of the 60 votes needed to move the legislation forward.

Senate Republicans voted to block the defense funding bill from advancing on Monday, arguing that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) wasn’t giving them the chance to get votes on amendments, including a measure levying sanctions on Nord Stream 2.

The Russian oil pipeline would bypass Ukraine in Russian gas transit routes to Europe and is expected to double Russian gas exports to Germany. The move could potentially cost Ukrainian firms billions of dollars in transit revenue collected during the transfer of Russian natural gas and thereby weaken Ukraine’s strategic importance to the region.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) singled out Nord Stream 2 as an important issue that needed to be voted on, and vowed to oppose advancing the bill without progress on the amendment.

The week before Thanksgiving, a deal to hold roll call votes on amendments fell apart after seven Republicans objected due to the exclusion of their proposals in the amendments.

Sen. James Risch (R-Idaho), the ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) were among those Republicans, and called for a vote on their Nord Stream 2 sanctions measure.

Cruz has held up votes on key Biden nominations since May, but offered to lift the hold on some diplomatic nominees Wednesday if the amendment gets a vote.

On Monday, all Senate Republicans except Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) voted to filibuster the measure to cut off debate on the NDAA.

Some Democrats joined Republicans in opposing advancing the legislation without voting on amendments.

In May, the President Joe Biden waived sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, despite bipartisan support for the sanctions in 2020. At the time, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the decision was made to “rebuild relationships with our allies and partners in Europe.”

This week, Blinken and other Biden administration officials reportedly made calls urging senators to quash Nord Stream 2 sanction measures unless the White House has the power to waive the congressionally-mandated sanctions.

As of Thursday morning, the Senate had not voted on any amendments to the NDAA, including the Nord Stream 2 sanctions. On Wednesday night, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) stopped a deal on amendments from moving to a vote when his amendment on Chinese imports was cut from the package.

The House included an amendment providing sanctions on Nord Stream 2 with no White House waiver option in its version of the defense funding bill, which passed with bipartisan support. Some House Democrats have expressed concern about the prolonged Senate debate over the NDAA. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), co-chair of the Congressional Ukraine Caucus, released a statement on Wednesday to “urge final inclusion of mandatory Nord Stream 2 sanctions with an appropriate bipartisan Congressional waiver review process.”

The debate over sanctions comes as the Biden administration navigates Russian troops increasing their presence on the border of Ukraine and U.S. attempts to rebuild an alliance with Germany.

Foreign companies partnering on the pipeline spent more than $7.4 million lobbying against sanctions and other issues related to the project since the start of 2020 with $3 million of that spent in the first three quarters of 2021.

Nord Stream 2, which is wholly-owned by Russia’s state-run energy firm Gazprom, spent nearly $2.5 million on lobbying in the first three quarters of 2021. Nord Stream CEO Matthias Warnig and Gazprom’s executive chair Alexei Miller are both known as close allies of Russian President Vladmir Putin.



Nord Stream 2 has paid more than $4.5 million to Roberti Global, a lobbying firm run by Democratic donor and lobbyist Vincent Roberti. Roberti disclosed lobbying on “issues related to the U.S. position toward the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, including potential financial sanctions affecting the project.”

Since the start of 2020, the pipeline company has paid about $1.3 million to BGR Group for lobbying by Walker Roberts, a former Republican staffer for foreign affairs congressional committees.

Five foreign companies partnering with Gazprom on the pipeline — Austria’s OMV AG, the Netherlands’ Shell International, France’s ENGIE, and Germany’s Wintershall and Uniper SE — hired lobbyists at McLarty Inbound to lobby the State Department and the National Security Council. They collectively paid the firm more than $840,000 for lobbying in 2020 and $600,000 in the first three quarters of 2021.

McLarty managing partner Richard Burt, the former U.S. ambassador to Germany, disclosed work for the foreign companies partnering on Nord Stream 2, lobbying on “Russian sanctions issues” and “natural gas as an element of European energy security.”

In May, the Democratic National Committee announced that the Biden campaign and its joint fundraising committee refunded contributions from Burt following OpenSecrets reporting that he was a registered lobbyist at the time of his donations. Biden had pledged to reject lobbyist donations.

Even though Nord Stream is owned by a Russian state-run firm, the Kremlin has insisted the pipeline is a “commercial project,” and proponents of the pipeline are registered under the Lobbying Disclosure Act instead of the Foreign Agents Registration Act, keeping details of which government officials the lobbyists met with hidden from the public. Lobbyists for private foreign entities that would otherwise be required to follow FARA disclosure rules can choose to register under the LDA so long as the “principal beneficiary” of the influence operation is not a foreign government or political party.

Several European countries have cited the Russian government’s role in the project in their efforts to kill the pipeline. Those calls escalated after the Kremlin arrested and detained Putin critic Alexei Navalny last year. Germany claims the pipeline project is unrelated to the internal politics of Russia.

Ukraine, which stands to lose the most power from the pipeline, has emerged as the strongest critic of the project.

The Federation of Employers of the Oil and Gas Industry of Ukraine paid lobbying firm Yorktown Solutions $840,000 in 2020, according to FARA records, and renewed their contract through at least the end of 2021.

The Ukrainian oil and gas trade association disclosed lobbying congressional staffers on the “risks posed” by “diversionary gas pipeline projects.”

Yorktown Solutions is run by Daniel Vajdich, a lobbyist and former adviser to Cruz. In March, Cruz tweeted that he would hold up nomination proceedings for Deputy Secretary of State nominee Wendy Sherman and other State Department nominees until sanctions are imposed, as first reported by Foreign Lobby Report.

Sanctions are not the only potential impediment to the pipeline, which was physically completed in September, but needs certification by German regulators before it can be operational.

In November, Germany’s network regulator suspended the process due to a German law preventing certification because Nord Stream 2 AG, which is owned by Gazprom, is incorporated as a Swiss company. The company is now in the process of establishing a German affiliate.

The NDAA isn’t the only piece of legislation Congress has pushed off.

Government funding expires at midnight on Dec. 3, and House and Senate leaders are attempting to send a funding bill to Biden’s desk before the end of the year.

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[piperpeter] 29/11/2021 12:39

NEW GREEN HYDROGEN AND AMMONIA PRODUCTION COMPANY LISTING ON AIM IN DECEMBER.

ATOME ENERGY - Subsidiary of President Energy plc (PPC).



President Energy will pay a dividend in specie of ordinary shares in Atome Energy to President Energy shareholders who are on the register at record time, which will be announced very soon.

PPC

Pp.