Chicagoland Consumers Can Save Big At The Pump With New Fuel Rewards Network™ Program

CHICAGO, Sept. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Drivers are increasingly concerned about the price they pay at the pump and consumers in the greater Chicagoland area will now have the opportunity to pay significantly less. The Fuel Rewards Network™ program or FRN™ program is a new cents per gallon rewards program available at Shell, the No. 1 selling gasoline brand in the U.S., and offered by Excentus, the market leader in cents per gallon loyalty programs. The FRN program is currently available in more than 100 U.S. markets and will expand to nearly 200 markets coast-to-coast by the end of the year.  

The FRN program is different from other loyalty programs currently available as it offers consumers a variety of ways to earn rewards through everyday purchases of things like food, clothing and household goods which can be redeemed for fuel savings at participating Shell stations. While the different ways to save vary by market, some consumers already using the program have paid as little as 1 cent per gallon at participating Shell stations by redeeming Fuel Rewards^® savings they've earned through the FRN program for big rewards at the pump[1]. The average consumer savings are $0.33 per gallon.[2]

According to a national survey about loyalty rewards programs sponsored by Shell, consumers are interested in expanding the ways in which they can save money. And with online shopping increasing in popularity and a convenient option for many consumers, nearly 90 percent would like to earn rewards from their online shopping[3]. Beyond earning rewards by shopping at hundreds of online merchants from the Online Mall including Bass Pro Shops, BestBuy.com, Sears.com and many more, Chicagoland consumers can also earn rewards at many of their favorite local restaurants like Romano's Macaroni Grill, Anyway's Chicago Restaurant, Blind Faith Cafe, Yolk, Park 52 and many others.

Local consumers can also take advantage of this unique program by combining their multiple rewards offers – or cents per gallon savings – together for potentially huge savings instantly at the pump. The savings can be redeemed on all grades of Shell Nitrogen Enriched Gasolines including Shell V-Power® Premium Gasoline, and Shell Diesel at participating stations, up to 20 gallons per purchase, per vehicle.

To participate in the program, Chicagoland consumers just need to pick up a free FRN Card at any one of the more than 380 participating local Shell stations and activate it by visiting fuelrewards.com and following the easy steps to start earning rewards on fuel. Consumers can also request an FRN Card online at fuelrewards.com.

Chicagoland consumers can currently save with the FRN program in the following four ways:

• Online Mall – Access nearly 700 brand name online merchants offering 5 cents per gallon for every $50 spent. Some online merchants may offer 2x, 5x, 10x rewards or more – so consumers can multiply their savings!
• Dining – Earn 10 cents per gallon for every $50 spent when dining at more than 10,000 participating restaurant locations nationwide.
• eCoupons – Digital coupons available for select retailers in select markets provide additional cents per gallon savings when the digital coupon is selected at fuelrewards.com and the item is subsequently purchased at a participating retailer.
• Grocery and Other Programs – Consumers can buy the everyday things they need and earn Fuel Rewards savings from participating Jewel-Osco stores and retailers. Consumers just link their participating grocer or other retailer loyalty card to their FRN Account to combine their rewards for even more savings at the pump at Shell in select markets.

"Shell knows more consumers are looking for a smart loyalty rewards program that can help them save money at the pump without having to jump through hoops or sacrifice their quality of fuel," said Dan Little, Shell North American Fuels Marketing Manager. "That's why teaming up with Excentus on this revolutionary rewards program is so exciting because it empowers Chicagoland consumers to never pay full price at the pump again!"

"Excentus is excited to introduce the outstanding savings potential of the Fuel Rewards Network program to Chicagoland consumers," said Dickson Perry, Chairman and CEO of Excentus. "By teaming up with Shell, local consumers who participate in our program will be able to set their own price for high-quality fuel simply by choosing to buy the things they normally buy through one of our participating retailers and programs. These are trying times for many families, and we're proud to be able to offer relief through the Fuel Rewards Network program."

Chicagoland consumers can learn more about the FRN program and watch their fuel savings add up by visiting fuelrewards.com. Or find Shell on the 'On the Road' tab on Facebook at www.facebook.com/shell or visit the FRN program page at www.facebook.com/fuelrewards for more information.

About Shell
Shell Oil Products US, a subsidiary of Shell Oil Company, is a leader in the refining, transportation and marketing of fuels, with a network of approximately 6,000 Shell-branded gasoline stations in the western United States. Another 8,300 Shell-branded stations in the eastern and southern are managed by Motiva Enterprises LLC, a 50/50 joint venture between Shell Oil Company and Saudi Refining, Inc.

Shell Oil Company is an affiliate of the Royal Dutch Shell plc, a global group of energy and petrochemical companies with 93,000 employees in more than 90 countries. [(NYSE:RDS.A) and (NYSE:RDS.B)]

About Excentus
Excentus Corporation is the market leader in providing marketing and promotional programs and services utilizing price rollback discounts at the pump as the ultimate consumer reward. Through its patented Fuel Rewards^® systems and methods, the growing Fuel Rewards Network™ program provides its members with the opportunity to earn free gas simply by purchasing the things they normally would at more than 1,000 retail locations, nearly 700 online merchants and 10,000+ restaurants, and redeeming their rewards at participating fuel stations across the country. To date, Excentus has helped over 10 million consumers save hundreds of millions of dollars on fuel.  In addition, Excentus licenses various uses of its patent portfolio and through its business unit, Centego II, LLC delivers private-label fuel discount programs. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Excentus Corp. was founded in 1996 and is a privately held company with over 150 employees. For more information please visit www.excentus.com.

Cautionary Note

The companies in which Royal Dutch Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate entities. In this press release "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 press release 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 press release, 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 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 press 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, 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'', ''goals'', ''intend'', ''may'', ''objectives'', ''outlook'', ''plan'', ''probably'', ''project'', ''risks'', ''seek'', ''should'', ''target'', ''will'' 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 press release, including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for Shell's products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserves 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 press 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 December 31, 2011 (available at http://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 press 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 press release.

We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this press release that United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) strictly prohibits us from including in our 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 www.sec.gov. You can also obtain these forms from the SEC by calling 1-800-SEC-0330.

[1] According to fuelrewards.com 'Leaderboard of Savings' (September 10, 2012)
[2] According to fuelrewards.com 'Leaderboard of Savings' (September 10, 2012)
[3] Data from StrategyOne's loyalty rewards survey (June 8, 2012)

Shell Oil Products US
910 Louisiana Street
Houston, TX  77002
Internet http://www.shell.com

SOURCE Shell Oil Products US