TL: NV TURKSE SHELL - GREENPEACE  FACTSHEET
SO: Greenpeace Communications, Greenpeace International (GP)
DT: March 15, 1996
Keywords: environment oil energy shell transnationals turkey
europe /
 
Greenpeace International, March 1996
 
NV Turkse SHELL
 
NV Turkse Shell (NVTS) was owned by Shell Petroleum NV which
is one of the Royal Dutch/Shell Group of companies.  NVTS, is
an exploration and production firm that held exploration
acreage and producing assets in southeast Turkey, where it
operated 27 fields from a base in Diyarbakir.  In 1995 its
production was around 13,400 barrels of crude oil per day
(b/d), or 20 per cent of Turkey's total output [1]. 
 
In December 1995 Shell, Petroleum N.V. sold all its shares in
NV Turkse Shell to Perenco [2].  Shell reported that it had
decided to sell its shares because NVTS was no longer of
interest within the global exploration and production strategy
of the Royal Dutch/Shell Group [3,4].  However, the deal would
not affect Shell's continued interest in maintaining and
expanding their activities in the downstream sector in Turkey.
These include the marketing of petroleum products via a retail
network of about 630 stations; the manufacturing of
lubricants, greases and some industrial chemicals, and a share
in the ATAS refinery in Mersin
[5]. 
 
PERENCO
 
Perenco plc is an international operating company formed by
merging the two companies, Kelt Energy plc and Perenco [6]. 
It is based in London and Paris with exploration and
production interests in the US, Britain, Colombia, Gabon and
Cameroun [7]. In 1995 Perenco bought the remaining 25 per cent
of publicly held shares in Kelt Energy plc, London, to
complete its purchase of Kelt. 
 
Kelt's main business strategy, since 1992 has been to buy
unprofitable producing assets from majors and operate them at
a profit after paring staff and operating costs to a minimum. 
Executive Director, Paddy Spink, is reported as stating "when
we take over a field we operate with 50 per cent of the staff
of a major and without a substantial number of expatriates." 
And that "Kelt is not afraid to make itself unpopular with
other oil companies, contractors, or government departments. 
When we take over a producing asset, we immediately
renegotiate suppliers' contracts which have become cozy"[8].  
 
Spink claimed that Kelt does not cut corners on safety or
environmental precautions because this would ". . . catch you
out in the long run." Instead, Kelt does not overspecify
equipment to extend its reliability and cuts preventive
maintenance.   Kelt bought mature production in Gabon from
Amoco in October 1992, aiming to cut operting costs to the
bone and improve profitablity [9].  In 1994, the company took
over the Cameroon operations of Total SA [10] and, in 1993,
took over a number of producing fields in Colombia from Elf
Aquitaine [11].
 
 
 
References and Notes:
 
1  Shell to Sell Shares in Turkse Shell to Perenco.  December
11 1995.  Financial Times.
 
2.  Industry Briefs; Perenco.  Oil and Gas Journal, December
11 1995 page 36.
 
3.  Ibid 1
 
4.  Shell Petroleum sells Turkish exploration, production
insterests to Perenco.  Company News; Mergers and Aquisitions.

AFX News December 4 1995.  
 
5.  Shell Petroleum NV sells Turkey Shares.  UPI, BC Cycle. 
December 4 1995.
 
6.  Industry Briefs; Companies.  Oil and Gas Journal, August 7
1995 page 36.
 
7.  Ibid 1.
 
8.  Kelt's game plan: pare costs.  Drilling/Production;
Watching the World page 41.  Oil and Gas Journal.  June 6
1994.
 
9.  Oil Sector in 1993; Kelt Energy; Earnings.  ICC
Stockbroker Research Reports page 22.  February 1 1993.
 
10.  Industry Briefs; Companies.  Oil and Gas Journal, January
10 1994 page 29.
 
11. Ibid 8.