Shell: time to deliver

With a healthy inventory of upstream projects in development, Shell must put its operational mettle to the test

Good things come to those who wait. No pain, no gain. Every cloud has a silver lining. For investors in Royal Dutch Shell in need of a pep talk, these might be clichés worth repeating. Since 2004 – when it was forced to make large reductions to its proved oil and gas reserves, after admitting to having grossly exaggerated them – Shell has been trying to invest its way out of trouble. On paper, the policy looks set to pay off: work in progress includes several liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects – Pluto, Browse and Gorgon in Australia, Sakhalin in Russia, Qatargas 4 and ventures in Nigeria; various field developments, including Norway's Ormen Lange gasfield, Nigeria's Bonga and Kazakhstan's