Shell International Petroleum Company Limited Signs £300 Million Agreement With Canary Wharf Group & Qatari Diar for Shell Centre Redevelopment
LONDON, July 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --
Shell International Limited (Shell) (NYSE: RDS.A)(NYSE: RDS.B) today confirmed it has signed an agreement with Canary Wharf Group & Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company to redevelop the Shell Centre site on the South Bank in London for a cash consideration of £300 million.
Shell will retain the freehold of the site with Canary Wharf Group & Qatari Diar holding a 999 year lease for the site, excluding the Tower. This is subject to approved planning permission.
Shell has been a major employer and occupier on the South Bank for more than 50 years. Shell will continue to occupy the Tower and in addition will lease 210,000 sq ft in a new building on site for its London headquarters.
"Today we have chosen world acclaimed developers that have an excellent track record in delivering on projects of this size and scale", said Graham van't Hoff, Chairman, Shell UK. "This is a great step forward and represents considerable reinvestment in the South Bank. Shell Centre is our long-term home in London and we're keen to start working with Canary Wharf Group, Qatari Diar and local stakeholders to develop and deliver a project that will benefit both London and the local community."
Plans for the site will undergo extensive public consultation and engagement throughout the application process.
George Iacobescu CBE, Chairman and Chief Executive, Canary Wharf Group, said: "The South Bank is one of London's best loved places, it is both a privilege and a great responsibility to be involved in this redevelopment project which will re-energise a key part of this area of London. We look forward to working with our partner Qatari Diar, the local community and with Shell to enhance the London economy and the vibrancy of the South Bank."
Shell will be relocating approximately 1,700 staff to office space at 40 Bank Street, Canary Wharf and an existing office on The Strand to facilitate the redevelopment. Relocation is planned to be complete by the end of this year. On completion of the Shell Centre development, all London based staff will return to the South Bank, which remains Shell's long-term home in London.
Mohammed bin Ali Al Hedfa, Group CEO of Qatari Diar, said: "Qatari Diar is delighted to have signed this agreement with Shell. We look forward to working with our partners at Canary Wharf Group and the local community to redevelop this iconic location. When Qatari Diar begin any new project we are entering into a long-lasting commitment with our partners and the wider community to leave a positive cultural, environmental and sustainable footprint."
Notes to editors
Shell is advised by CB Richard Ellis and Rothschild.
Royal Dutch Shell plc
Royal Dutch Shell plc is incorporated in England and Wales, has its headquarters in The Hague and is listed on the London, Amsterdam, and New York stock exchanges. Shell companies have operations in more than 100 countries and territories with businesses including oil and gas exploration and production; production and marketing of liquefied natural gas and gas to liquids; manufacturing, marketing and shipping of oil products and chemicals and renewable energy projects. For further information, visit http://www.shell.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 24% 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', '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 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, 2010 (available at http://www.shell.com/investor and http://www.sec.gov - opens in new window). These factors also should be considered by the reader. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this press release, 28 July 2011. 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.
The We may have used certain terms in this press release that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) 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 - opens in new window. You can also obtain these forms from the SEC by calling 1-800-SEC-0330
SOURCE Royal Dutch Shell plc
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