Editor’s Note: Royal Dutch Shell plc (ADR) (NYSE:RDS.A), TOTAL S.A. (ADR) (NYSE:TOT), Petroleo Brasileiro Petrobras SA (ADR) (NYSE:PBR), Vodafone Group Plc (ADR) (NASDAQ:VOD)
Greenpeace launches attack on Shell at Belgian Grand Prix (Tire Business)
Greenpeace said that 35 of its activists were involved in a carefully coordinated protest against race sponsor Royal Dutch Shell plc (ADR) (NYSE:RDS.A) at the Belgian Grand Prix on Aug. 25, focusing on the oil company’s activities in the Arctic. Protestors managed to get on top of the main grandstand shortly before the start, with four of them rappelling down to eventually reveal a 20-meter-wide banner that read “Arctic Oil? Shell No!” The protestors remained in place, dangling from the roof of the grandstand, until after the race.
Chopper carrying passengers for Total crashes; four killed (Seeking Alpha)
A helicopter carrying 18 people for TOTAL S.A. (ADR) (NYSE:TOT) has crashed off the coast of Scotland and killed four people from contractor organizations. Fourteen people were rescued. The helicopter involved is a Super Puma L2, made by the Eurocopter unit of EADS (EADSF.PK). Last year, a different version of the chopper crashed in two separate incidents. A safety group has called for the grounding of all Super Pumas.
Brazil – Petrobras puts Usina Boa Vista expansion on hold (AgraNet)
State-owned energy supplier Petroleo Brasileiro Petrobras SA (ADR) (NYSE:PBR) said plans to expand Nova Fronteira’s Usina Boa Vista in Quirinopolis, Goiás are put on hold due to an unattractive and less secure outlook for the return on investment. The company through its unit Petrobras Biocombustivel (PBio) has a 49% share in Nova Fronteira since 2010; the remainder is held by sugar and ethanol producer Sao Martinho.
Vodafone-Shell transfer pricing case: Bombay court tells I-T dept to respond (Business Line)
The Bombay High Court has asked the Assistant Commissioner of Income-Tax (I-T) Department to respond to arguments by the Indian units of Vodafone Group Plc (ADR) (NASDAQ:VOD) and Royal Dutch Shell plc (ADR) (NYSE:RDS.A) against transfer pricing issues, according to Taxsutra.com, a portal that provides tax case-related information. The court adjourned till September 30 the hearing of the writ petition filed by both the entities. However, the I-T department had sought eight weeks adjournment as it was yet to appoint a special counsel in the case of Vodafone. It has, meanwhile, appointed Girish Dave to represent the Revenue Department in the Royal Dutch Shell plc (ADR) (NYSE:RDS.A) India case.
Petrobras Outspends Exxon Researching Next Oil Frontiers: Energy (Bloomberg)
On a seabed off Brazil, Petroleo Brasileiro Petrobras SA (ADR) (NYSE:PBR) is separating water from oil as it pumps the crude from beneath the Atlantic. No company had done that before. The process, which takes the separation and reinjection mechanism off oil platforms, is the first of its kind in waters deeper than 1,000 feet and frees space so platforms can serve more wells. It was developed by state-run producer Petrobras and FMC Technologies Inc. (FTI) at a research and development center that boasts 227 laboratories on an island off Rio de Janeiro. Without developing technologies like this, Petroleo Brasileiro Petrobras SA (ADR) (NYSE:PBR) will struggle to haul in the world’s biggest discoveries this century, trapped beneath a sub-sea layer of salt off Brazil’s southeastern coast, including the giant Libra prospect up for auction in October.
