Royal Dutch Shell plc - Form 6-K
 

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 6-K

REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER
PURSUANT TO RULE 13a-16 OR 15d-16
UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the month of April, 2010

Commission File Number: 1-32575

Royal Dutch Shell plc
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(Translation of registrant’s name into English)
 
30, Carel van Bylandtlaan, 2596 HR The Hague
The Netherlands
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(Address of principal executive office)
 
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F:  [x] Form 20-F    [ ] Form 40-F
 
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1):  [ ]
 
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7):  [ ]
 
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the information contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934:  [ ] Yes    [x] No
 
If "Yes" is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the registrant in connection with Rule 12g3-2(b):    n/a 
 

FIRST QUARTER 2010 INTERIM DIVIDEND

The Board of Royal Dutch Shell plc (“RDS”) today announced an interim dividend
in respect of the first quarter of 2010 of US$0.42 per A and B ordinary share,
equal to the US dollar dividend for the same quarter last year.
Dividends declared on A ordinary shares (“A shares”) will be paid by default in
euro, although holders of A shares will be able to elect to receive dividend in
pounds sterling. Dividends declared on B ordinary shares (“B shares”) will be
paid by default in pounds sterling, although holders of B shares will be able to
elect to receive dividend in euro. Dividends declared on American Depository
Receipts (“ADRs”) will be paid in US dollars.

Details relating to the first quarter 2010 interim dividend
This dividend will be payable on June 9, 2010 to those members whose names are
on the Register of Members on May 7, 2010. The shares will become ex-dividend on
May 5, 2010.
It is expected that the dividends on the B shares will be paid via the Dividend
Access Mechanism from UK-sourced income of the Shell Group.
Per ordinary share	Q1 2010
RDS A shares (US$)
	0.42
RDS B shares (US$)
	0.42

Per ADR	Q1 2010
RDS A ADRs (US$)	0.84
RDS B ADRs (US$)	0.84

Dividends on A shares will be paid, by default, in euro at the rate of €0.3154
per A share. Holders of A shares who have validly submitted pounds sterling
currency elections by April 27, 2010 will be entitled to a dividend of 27.37p
per A share.
Dividends on B shares will be paid, by default, in pounds sterling at the rate
of 27.37p per B share. Holders of B shares who have validly submitted euro
currency elections by April 27, 2010 will be entitled to a dividend of €0.3154
per B share.
Holders of A or B shares in ADR form will be entitled to a dividend of US$0.84
per ADR.


Taxation
Dividends on A shares will be subject to the deduction of Netherlands dividend
withholding tax at the rate of 15%, which may be reduced in certain
circumstances. Provided certain conditions are met, shareholders in receipt of A
share dividends may also be entitled to a non-payable dividend tax credit in the
United Kingdom.
Shareholders resident in the United Kingdom, receiving dividends on B shares
through the Dividend Access Mechanism, are entitled to a tax credit. This tax
credit is not repayable. Non-residents may also be entitled to a tax credit, if
double tax arrangements between the United Kingdom and their country of
residence so provide, or if they are eligible for relief given to non-residents
with certain special connections with the United Kingdom or to nationals of
states in the European Economic Area.
The amount of tax credit is 10/90ths of the cash dividend, the tax credit
referable to the first quarter 2010 interim dividend of US$0.42 (27.37p or
€0.3154) is US$0.05 (3.04p or €0.035) per ordinary share and the dividend and
tax credit together amount to US$0.47 (30.41p or €0.3504).


Dividend reinvestment plan
The Royal Bank of Scotland N.V. (“RBS”) and Equiniti each have established a
dividend reinvestment facility which enables RDS shareholders to elect to have
their dividend payments used to purchase RDS shares of the same class as those
already held by them. The dividend reinvestment plans (the “DRIPs”) are provided
by RBS in respect of shares held through Euroclear Nederland and by Equiniti in
respect of all other shares (but not ADRs). DRIPs for the ADRs (both Class A
ADRs and Class B ADRs) traded on the NYSE are available through The Bank of New
York Mellon.
Enquiries about the DRIPs, including how to elect to participate and information
about the reinvestment mechanisms under the respective plans should, in the case
of shareholders holding through Euroclear Nederland, be directed to their bank
or broker and in the case of all other shareholders (other than holders of ADRs)
to Equiniti. Enquiries relating to the DRIPs for ADRs (both Class A ADRs and
Class B ADRs) should be made to The Bank of New York Mellon.


Scrip dividend scheme
At this year’s Annual General Meeting (May 18, 2010) the RDS Board is seeking
the ability to introduce and operate a scrip dividend scheme if the Board
considers it appropriate and in the interests of shareholders and RDS to do so.
A scrip dividend scheme, if introduced, would give shareholders the right to
elect to receive new ordinary shares in the capital of RDS instead of some or
all of their future cash dividends. If a scrip dividend scheme is introduced,
shareholders would be provided with full details of its terms and conditions and
how to participate. Any such authority granted by shareholders would last for a
period of five years from the date of the Annual General Meeting in accordance
with RDS’s Articles of Association.


Royal Dutch Shell plc
The Hague, April 28, 2010
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Cautionary Note

The companies in which Royal Dutch Shell plc directly and indirectly owns
investments are separate entities. In this announcement “Shell”, “Shell group”
and “Royal Dutch Shell” are sometimes used for convenience where references are
made to Royal Dutch Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the
words “we”, “us” and “our” are also used to refer to subsidiaries in general or
to those who work for them. These expressions are also used where no useful
purpose is served by identifying the particular company or companies.
‘‘Subsidiaries’’, “Shell subsidiaries” and “Shell companies” as used in this
announcement refer to companies in which Royal Dutch Shell either directly or
indirectly has control, by having either a majority of the voting rights or the
right to exercise a controlling influence. The companies in which Shell has
significant influence but not control are referred to as “associated companies”
or “associates” and companies in which Shell has joint control are referred to
as “jointly controlled entities”. In this announcement, associates and jointly
controlled 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 34% shareholding in Woodside Petroleum Ltd.)
ownership interest held by Shell in a venture, partnership or company, after
exclusion of all third-party interest.

This announcement 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,
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future
expectations that are based on management’s current expectations and assumptions
and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual
results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or
implied in these statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other
things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Royal Dutch Shell to
market risks and statements expressing management’s expectations, beliefs,
estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. These forward-looking
statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as
‘‘anticipate’’, ‘‘believe’’, ‘‘could’’, ‘‘estimate’’, ‘‘expect’’, ‘‘intend’’,
‘‘may’’, ‘‘plan’’, ‘‘objectives’’, ‘‘outlook’’, ‘‘probably’’, ‘‘project’’,
‘‘will’’, ‘‘seek’’, ‘‘target’’, ‘‘risks’’, ‘‘goals’’, ‘‘should’’ and similar
terms and phrases. There are a number of factors that could affect the future
operations of Royal Dutch Shell and could cause those results to differ
materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements included in
this announcement, including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in
crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for the Shell’s products; (c)
currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and 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 sanctions; (j) legislative,
fiscal and regulatory developments including regulatory measures addressing
climate change; (k) 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 announcement 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 December 31, 2009 (available at
www.shell.com/investor and www.sec.gov ). These factors also should be
considered by the reader.  Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the
date of this announcement April 28, 2010. 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 announcement.


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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 333-155201 and 333-155201-01);
and

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




SIGNATURES
 
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
 
    Royal Dutch Shell plc
     
Date: 28 April 2010 By: /s/ M.C.M. Brandjes

  Name:  M.C.M. Brandjes
  Title: Company Secretary