Shell Accepts Offer for Working Interest in Gulf of Mexico Holstein Asset
THE HAGUE, The Netherlands, September 10, 2012/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
Royal Dutch Shell plc (NYSE: RDS.A)(NYSE:RDS.B) announced today it has agreed to
sell its 50% working interest in the Holstein Field, comprised of Green Canyon
Blocks 644, 645 and 688 in the Gulf of Mexico, to Plains Exploration &
Production (PXP) for approximately $560 million, subject to closing.
Shell received an unsolicited offer from PXP for Shell's working interest. The
transaction is effective October 1, 2012 and is expected to close by year-end
2012.
Holstein is a mature deepwater asset and the sale is consistent with Shell's
continuing practice of reviewing our existing portfolio and evaluating new
opportunities.
The Holstein Unit is centered on a spar platform anchored in 1350 meters (4400
feet) water depth and first produced in December 2004. Shell's 50% interest
represents about two percent of the company's overall Gulf of Mexico net
production and had a 30-day net average production of 7.4 kboe/d prior to
Hurricane Isaac.
Shell retains a major Gulf of Mexico presence and is a leading deepwater
producer. The company recently noted three successful appraisal wells at the
Appomattox and Vito fields, which are expected to begin producing in the second
half of the decade.
Note to editors:
Shell holds 50% interest in Holstein. BP (operator) holds the remaining 50%.
Cautionary Note
The companies in which Royal Dutch Shell plc directly and indirectly owns
investments are separate entities. In this release "Shell", "Shell group" and
"Royal Dutch Shell" are sometimes used for convenience where references are made
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those who work for them. These expressions are also used where no useful purpose
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entities are also referred to as "equity-accounted investments". The term "Shell
interest" is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect (for
example, through our 23% shareholding in Woodside Petroleum Ltd.) ownership
interest held by Shell in a venture, partnership or company, after exclusion of
all third-party interest.
This release contains forward-looking statements concerning the financial
condition, results of operations and businesses of Royal Dutch Shell. All
statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be,
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and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual
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cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the
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production results; (e) reserve estimates; (f) loss of market share and industry
competition; (g) environmental and physical risks; (h) risks associated with the
identification of suitable potential acquisition properties and targets, and
successful negotiation and completion of such transactions; (i) the risk of
doing business in developing countries and countries subject to international
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economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l)
political risks, including the risks of expropriation and renegotiation of the
terms of contracts with governmental entities, delays or advancements in the
approval of projects and delays in the reimbursement for shared costs; and (m)
changes in trading conditions. All forward-looking statements contained in this
release are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements
contained or referred to in this section. Readers should not place undue
reliance on forward-looking statements. Additional factors that may affect
future results are contained in Royal Dutch Shell's 20-F for the year ended 31
December, 2011 (available at http://www.shell.com/investor and
http://www.sec.gov). These factors also should be considered by the reader. Each
forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this release, September
10, 2012. Neither Royal Dutch Shell nor any of its subsidiaries undertake any
obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a
result of new information, future events or other information. In light of these
risks, results could differ materially from those stated, implied or inferred
from the forward-looking statements contained in this release. There can be no
assurance that dividend payments will match or exceed those set out in this
release in the future, or that they will be made at all.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) permits oil and gas
companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose only proved reserves that
a company has demonstrated by actual production or conclusive formation tests to
be economically and legally producible under existing economic and operating
conditions. We use certain terms in this release, such as resources and oil in
place, that SEC's guidelines strictly prohibit us from including in filings with
the SEC. U.S. Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form
20-F, File No 1-32575, available on the SEC website http://www.sec.gov. You can
also obtain these forms from the SEC by calling 1-800-SEC-0330.


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Source: Royal Dutch Shell plc
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This Report on Form 6-K is incorporated by reference into:

a) the Registration Statement on Form F-3 of Royal Dutch Shell plc and Shell
International Finance B.V. (Registration Numbers 333-177588 and 333-177588-01);
and

b) the Registration Statements on Forms S-8 of Royal Dutch Shell plc
(Registration Numbers 333-126715, 333-141397 and 333-171206).