Shell Appoints University Learning Partners for Project Academy

10 Apr 2006, Royal Dutch Shell plc (Shell) today announced the appointment of four university partners for its global Project Academy, which has been established to support its capital projects programme. The four universities, who will work together with Shell as a consortium, are: Cranfield School of Management (UK); Delft University of Technology (Netherlands); The University of Texas at Austin/McCombs School of Business (USA) and Queensland University of Technology (Australia).

Shell Project Academy is an integrated development programme for Shell employees working at all stages of the project lifecycle. The programme includes learning events, assessment and accreditation, coaching and mentoring services, a global online knowledge network, project community events, and work experience opportunities.

The four university learning partners were selected for the quality and depth of their project management expertise, and are collaborating with Shell professionals to develop a world-class curriculum. In 2006, approximately 1000 Shell staff will participate in 40 Project Academy learning events, covering 19 learning modules.

Shell Chief Executive Jeroen van der Veer said: “These appointments are an important milestone for Shell Project Academy. It is one of a series of actions we are taking to achieve consistent project preparation and execution across our capital investment programme, which is $19 billion in 2006. Our university learning partners will complement Shell’s internal project management expertise with leading-edge external practices and research.”

“The Shell Project Academy is a long-term investment that will help us attract, develop and retain the industry’s best project practitioners,” he said. “There are significant benefits for individuals, the projects they work on, and our overall business.”

The learning partner consortium welcomed the appointments and said that the Shell Project Academy learning programme was unparalleled anywhere in the industry in quality and scope, and demonstrated Shell’s commitment to the highest standards of project performance.

Notes to editors

Each of the four learning partners will issue a news release on their appointment to Shell Project Academy. See web links and contacts below:

* Cranfield School of Management (UK): www.cranfield.ac.uk/som - opens in new window,
Fiona Leslie, +44 234754348
* The University of Texas at Austin/McCombs School of Business (USA): http://www.mccombs.utexas.edu/news/pressreleases/shell06.asp - opens in new window, David Wenger, + 1 5124713314
* Delft University of Technology (Netherlands): www.tudelft.nl - opens in new window,
Maarten Sanden, + 31 620408176
* Queensland University of Technology (Australia): www.qut.com - opens in new window,
Janne Rayner, +61 738642361

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Royal Dutch Shell plc

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