THE HAGUE, the Netherlands,
May 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --
The Board of Royal Dutch Shell
plc ("RDS") (NYSE:RDS.A)(NYSE:RDS.B) today announced an
interim dividend in respect of the first quarter of 2016 of
US$0.47 per A ordinary share ("A
Share") and B ordinary share ("B Share"), equal to the US dollar
dividend for the same quarter last year.
RDS provides eligible shareholders with a choice to receive
dividends in cash or in shares via a Scrip Dividend Programme ("the
Programme"). For further details please see below.
Details relating to the first quarter
2016 interim dividend
It is expected that cash dividends on the B Shares will be paid
via the Dividend Access Mechanism from UK-sourced income of the
Shell Group.
Per ordinary share Q1 2016
RDS A Shares (US$) 0.47
RDS B Shares (US$) 0.47
Cash dividends on A Shares will be paid, by default, in euro,
although holders of A Shares will be able to elect to receive
dividends in pounds sterling.
Cash dividends on B Shares will be paid, by default, in pounds
sterling, although holders of B Shares will be able to elect to
receive dividends in euro.
The pounds sterling and euro equivalent dividend payments will
be announced on June 13, 2016.
Per ADS Q1 2016
RDS A ADSs (US$) 0.94
RDS B ADSs (US$) 0.94
Cash dividends on American Depository Shares ("ADSs") will be
paid, by default, in US dollars.
ADS stands for an American Depositary Share. ADR stands for an
American Depositary Receipt. An ADR is a certificate that
evidences ADSs. ADSs are listed on the NYSE under the symbols
RDS.A and RDS.B. Each ADS represents two ordinary shares, two
A Shares in the case of RDS.A or two B Shares in the case of
RDS.B. In many cases the terms ADR and ADS are used
interchangeably.
Scrip Dividend Programme
RDS provides shareholders with a choice to receive dividends in
cash or in shares via the Programme.
Under the Programme shareholders can increase their shareholding
in RDS by choosing to receive new shares instead of cash dividends,
if approved by the Board. Only new A Shares will be issued
under the Programme, including to shareholders who currently hold B
Shares.
In some countries, joining the Programme may currently offer a
tax advantage compared with receiving cash dividends. In
particular, dividends paid out as shares by the Company will not be
subject to Dutch dividend withholding tax (currently 15 per cent),
unlike cash dividends paid on A shares, and they will not generally
be taxed on receipt by a UK shareholder or a Dutch shareholder.
Shareholders who elect to join the Programme will increase the
number of shares held in RDS without having to buy existing shares
in the market, thereby avoiding associated dealing costs.
Shareholders who do not join the Programme will continue to
receive in cash any dividends approved by the Board.
Shareholders who held only B Shares and joined the Programme are
reminded they will need to make a Scrip Dividend Election in
respect of their new A Shares if they wish to join the Programme in
respect of such new shares. However, this is only necessary
if the shareholder has not previously made a Scrip Dividend
Election in respect of any new A Shares issued.
For further information on the Programme, including how to join
if you are eligible, please refer to the appropriate publication
available on http://www.shell.com/scrip .
Dividend timetable for the first
quarter 2016 interim dividend
Announcement date May 4, 2016
Ex-dividend date RDS A and RDS B ADS May 18, 2016
Ex-dividend date RDS A and RDS B shares May 19, 2016
Record date May 20, 2016
Scrip reference share price announcement date May 26, 2016
Closing of scrip election and currency election
(See Note) June 6, 2016
Pounds sterling and euro equivalents
announcement date June 13, 2016
Payment date June 27, 2016
Note
Both a different scrip and currency election date may apply to
shareholders holding shares in a securities account with a bank or
financial institution ultimately holding through Euroclear
Nederland. This may also apply to other shareholders who do not
hold their shares either directly on the Register of Members or in
the corporate sponsored nominee arrangement. Shareholders can
contact their broker, financial intermediary, bank or financial
institution for the election deadline that applies. A different
scrip election date may apply to registered and non-registered ADS
holders. Registered ADS holders can contact The Bank of New York
Mellon for the election deadline that applies. Non-registered ADS
holders can contact their broker, financial intermediary, bank or
financial institution for the election deadline that applies.
Taxation - cash dividends
Cash dividends on A Shares will be subject to the deduction of
Dutch dividend withholding tax at the rate of 15%, which may be
reduced in certain circumstances.
In April 2016, there were changes
to the UK taxation of dividends. The dividend tax credit has been
abolished, and a new tax free dividend allowance of £5,000
introduced. Dividend income in excess of the allowance will be
taxable at the following rates: 7.5% within the basic rate band;
32.5% within the higher rate band; and 38.1% on dividend income
taxable at the additional rate.
If you are uncertain as to the tax treatment of any dividends
you should consult your own tax advisor.
CAUTIONARY NOTE
The companies in which Royal Dutch
Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are
separate legal entities. In this 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 release refer to companies over which Royal Dutch Shell plc either directly or
indirectly has control. Entities and unincorporated arrangements
over which Shell has joint control are generally referred to as
"joint ventures" and "joint operations" respectively.
Entities over which Shell has significant influence but
neither control nor joint control are referred to as "associates".
The term "Shell interest" is used for convenience to indicate the
direct and/or indirect ownership interest held by Shell in a
venture, partnership or company, after exclusion of all third-party
interest.
This 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", "schedule",
"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 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 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 risk factors that may affect future results
are contained in Royal Dutch Shell's 20-F for the year ended
December 31, 2015 (available at http://www.shell.com/investor and
http://www.sec.gov ). These risk factors also expressly qualify all
forward looking statements contained in this release and should be
considered by the reader. Each forward-looking statement
speaks only as of the date of this release, May 4, 2016 Neither
Royal Dutch Shell plc 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 release.
We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this
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
http://www.sec.gov .
Contacts:
- Investor Relations: Europe
+31-(0)-70-377-4540; North America
+1-832-337-2034
- Media: International +44-(0)-207-934-5550; Americas
+1-713-241-4544
SOURCE Royal Dutch Shell plc