Including New Year’s Day 2010, this is the thirteenth time this blog has wished it’s readers a Happy New Year. It has become a bit of a BG tradition to feature the New Year Fireworks in Sydney.
We all begin 2022 with some hopes that we all share. One of which is the dreaded coronavirus plague. Let us hope that the severity of the latest variant is not as severe as some fear and that future variants will be much less severe still. I am sure we all hope that the coronavirus will quickly become no more significant that a slight bout of the sniffles.
With many of the blog’s readers living in “Dear Old Blighty” they will all be hoping for mild weather with frequent Goldilock’s Wind – not too strong, but strong enough to keep the electricity from the wind turbines to reach the grid in adequate quantities.
In-and-of-itself the above sentence eloquently encapsulates the utter folly of the Buffoon’s Energy Policy! Former occupants of #10 (before 1979) would have shaken their heads in despair in the stupidity of putting the UK’s energy security at the vagaries of the weather!
The scriptwriters of the movie, “Carry On Follow That Camel” had it right when they described Downing Street as the Street of Many Fools!
For myself, I am hoping for a financially easier year than the one before. The coronavirus hit me hard – I cannot complain though as others have been hit a lot harder than me! Nevertheless I have taken steps to restructure my portfolio of shares. I have sold all the SSE shares now. I am tied in to what will shortly become Shell PLC and am concerned as I see the company’s board of directors manage the company’s affairs having to pay attention to the lunatic demands of the climate change brigade!
I am however optimistic! This because I would not be one bit surprised to discover that the re-domicile from Holland to England will turn out to be the first part of a strategy with the second part being a merger with BP.
It is axiomatic that a proposed merger between the two UK oil giants will attract an immediate investigation by the UK’s competition authorities. It will also bring forth investigations from the EU competition authority and the USA’s competition authority – this notwithstanding the FACTS that the UK is no longer a vassal of the EU nor is it a state of the union!
What these civil servants will concern themselves with is the effect on the retail markets for the end products. I would imagine the UK authority will demand a number of petrol stations to close, be sold to competitors or turned to a different use. It is the THIRD option that will commend the competition authority to approve the merger!
Why?
Because Dear reader Messrs. Looney & van Beurden are not (despite BP’s CEO’s unfortunate surname) idiots! They are very sensible and knowledgeable fellows! They will announce a plan to convert a large number of petrol forecourts into rapid charging stations for battery powered vehicles! This of course will gain the enthusiastic support of the real loonies in Her Majesty’s Government!
It is my earnest hope that the Shell petrol station at Carwin Rise, Hayle TR27 5DG will NOT be one of those chosen to be converted!
You see, IF BP and Shell merge the share price of Shell PLC will likely reach £20 and I will be able to sell my shares and reinvest in another company – probably the Dunedin Income Growth Investment Trust PLC!