About the Settlement

This page includes answers to frequently asked questions about the settlement with Royal Dutch Shell. 

To access complete settlement information in the password protected area of this web site, we invite you to register.

Timing and Process

Substance of the Settlement

Timing and Process

How long will the process take to get a final, binding settlement?
A: Timing is uncertain. However, we expect that it could take a year or more before the agreement is declared binding by the Amsterdam Court of Appeals and several years before all settlement proceeds are distributed.

How long until investors see the proceeds of the settlement?
A: Timing is uncertain, however, we expect that it could take a year or more before the court issues a final binding declaration and several years before all settlement proceeds are distributed.

Why will it take so long for investors to receive their money?
A: Under Dutch law, after the court declares the settlement binding, investors will receive further information on the terms and can consider whether they want to participate in the settlement. Investors will have a year to file their claim after the court issues a binding declaration. Then the settlement administrator, under supervision of the Foundation, will calculate the amounts due to participating investors and make payments.

When will the hearing on the settlement take place?
A: Timing is uncertain, however, we expect a hearing to be scheduled as soon as the second half of this year.

What is the next step?
A: The next step is for the parties to get the approval of the Amsterdam Court of Appeals to provide investors with the notices required under the Dutch law. These notices will contain additional information on the settlement and a schedule of various dates, including the date of the hearing to be held by the Court.

Can I receive a copy of the Settlement Agreement?
A: Yes, a copy is available on this website as well as on the websites of the other parties including Shell.

Who is actually entitled to claim under the Settlement, i.e. what does a shareholder need to prove to receive money?
A: Shareholders will ultimately need to provide information and supporting documentation relating to their purchases and sales of RD and STT shares in the relevant period (08 April 1999 through 18 March 2004, inclusive). Once the Court declares the settlement binding, you will receive additional information about submitting a claim and any required supporting materials.

I am a private shareholder and want to join the settlement. Can I do that? Who do I call to get involved?
A: You do not have to join anything to benefit from the settlement. Once the Court declares the settlement binding, you will receive additional information about submitting a claim. For more information please contact VEB (an organization representing individual shareholders) through their website www.shellcompensation.com.

I am an institutional investor and want to join the settlement. Can I do that? Who do I call to get involved?
A. If you are an institutional investor, and you want to join the parties involved in the petition before the Amsterdam Court of Appeals, please register and you will be contacted by one of the legal counsels who will assist you in joining this petition.

Is there more money available if more shareholders join?
A: No, the payments made by Shell in the settlement will be as announced. The allocation of those payments to investors who file claims in the settlement process will be made pursuant to the terms of a Plan of Allocation submitted to the Amsterdam Court of Appeals under the supervision of the Foundation.

Where can I find the Plan of Allocation you mention?
A: In the agreement this is referred to as the Settlement Distribution Plan. It is attached as Exhibit C to the Agreement. It generally allocates the settlement proceeds based on when securities were purchased during the relevant period and when, if at all, they were sold. The Plan has been reviewed and approved by the Shell Reserves Compensation Foundation.


Substance of the Settlement

Who are entitled to relief under the settlement agreement?
A: The settlement agreement provides that relief will be available to all Non-US investors (persons and entities) who purchased stock of the Royal Dutch Petroleum Company and/or the "Shell" Transport and Trading Company plc outside the United States during the period from 08 April 1999 through 18 March 2004, inclusive.

How were the settlement amounts arrived at?
A: The settlement is the result of negotiations between Shell and the participants of the Foundation.

Who are the participants and what is the Shell Reserves Compensation Foundation?
A: The June 23, 2005 Dutch law, Wet collectieve afwikkeling massaschade, stipulates the creation of a foundation to represent the interests of covered investors. The foundation's members include 52 European-based institutional investors (including ABP, PGGM, DEKA, UBS and Morley) as well as VEB and similar organizations representing individual shareholders from France, Sweden, Italy and Germany. The Foundation is governed by an independent Board of Directors, which includes professor M.J.G.C. Raaijmakers as its Chairman, professor M.J. Kroeze and G. Izeboud.

What is the purpose of the $12.5 million payment? Is it part of the settlement?
A: The $12.5 million payment is to be distributed equally to all shareholders who submit a valid claim for relief, irrespective of the number of shares held by the person or entity submitting a claim. The amount of the $12.5 million payment a shareholder is entitled to is therefore dependent on the number of claims that will be (validly) submitted. This additional amount and the way this is to be distributed is therefore likely to be of more interest to a person or entity holding a relatively low number of shares.

What is the purpose of the $6.25 million payment to be used by VEB and other similar organizations?
A: The $6.25 million is to be used by VEB and other similar organizations to promote and actively encourage individual shareholders to submit claims for relief and to assist shareholders in making claims for settlement relief.

Does this settlement cover investors who purchased options on Shell securities?
A: The settlement covers stock and similar securities, including derivatives, issued by Shell. Shell has not issued options during the period covered by the settlement.