THE HAGUE, The Netherlands,
May 2, 2013 /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 2013 of
US$0.45 per A ordinary share ("A
Share") and B ordinary share ("B Share"), an increase of
US$ 0.02 on the equivalent 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
2013 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 2013
RDS A Shares (US$) 0.45
RDS B Shares (US$) 0.45
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 10, 2013.
Per ADS Q1 2013
RDS A ADSs (US$) 0.90
RDS B ADSs (US$) 0.90
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 a Scrip Dividend Programme.
Under the Programme shareholders can increase their shareholding
in RDS by choosing to receive new shares instead of cash dividends
if declared by RDS. Only new A Shares will be issued under
the Programme, including to shareholders who currently hold B
Shares.
Joining the Programme may offer a tax advantage in some
countries compared with receiving cash dividends. In particular,
dividends paid out as shares will not be subject to Dutch dividend
withholding tax (currently 15 per cent) and will not generally be
taxed on receipt by a UK shareholder or a Dutch corporate
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 declared by RDS.
Shareholders who held only B Shares and joined the Scrip
Dividend 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 2013 interim dividend
Announcement date May 2, 2013
Ex-dividend date May 15, 2013
Record date May 17, 2013
Scrip reference share price announcement date May 22, 2013
Closing of scrip election and currency election * June 3, 2013
Pounds sterling and euro equivalents announcement date June 10, 2013
Payment date June 27, 2013
* 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.
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. Please contact your broker, financial
intermediary, bank or financial institution where you hold your
securities account for the election deadline that applies.
Taxation cash dividends
Cash dividends on A Shares will be subject to the deduction of
Netherlands dividend withholding
tax at the rate of 15%, which may be reduced in certain
circumstances. Provided certain conditions are met, shareholders in
receipt of A Share cash dividends may also be entitled to a
non-payable dividend tax credit in the United Kingdom.
Shareholders resident in the United
Kingdom, receiving cash dividends on B Shares through the
Dividend Access Mechanism, are entitled to a tax credit. This tax
credit is not repayable. Non-residents may also be entitled to a
tax credit, if double tax arrangements between the United Kingdom and their country of residence
so provide, or if they are eligible for relief given to
non-residents with certain special connections with the
United Kingdom or to nationals of
states in the European Economic Area.
The amount of tax credit is 10/90ths of the cash dividend, the
tax credit referable to the first quarter 2013 interim dividend of
US$0.45 is US$0.05 per ordinary share and the dividend and
tax credit together amount to US$0.50. The pounds sterling and euro equivalents
will be announced on June 10,
2013.
Royal Dutch
Shell plc
The
Hague, May 2nd, 2013
CAUTIONARY NOTE:
The companies in which Royal Dutch
Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are
separate 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 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 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 23% shareholding
in Woodside Petroleum Ltd.) 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", "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 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 potential
litigation and regulatory measures as a result of climate changes;
(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 factors that may affect future results are
contained in Royal Dutch Shell's 20-F for the year ended 31
December, 2012 (available at http://www.shell.com/investor and
http://www.sec.gov ). These factors also should be considered by
the reader. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of
the date of this release, 2 May 2013. 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 release. There can be no assurance that dividend payments
will match or exceed those set out in this release in the future,
or that they will be made at all.
Contacts:
Investor Relations:
International, +31(0)70-377-4540
North America, +1-713-241-1042
Media:
International, +44(0)207-934-5550
USA, +1-713-241-4544
SOURCE Royal Dutch Shell plc