Response to emails asking about oil reserves at Shell. Shell stated as PROVEN reserves, oil that might be there (unproven reserves). Analogy: you go deep sea fishing and see a bunch of shadows below the boat that you just "know" are marlin. You ain't got a "proven" marlin til you hook it and pull it up to the boat. As all of us who fish know, them shadows are seaweed, sewage, bait fish, or whales. Proven reserves mean you have drilled and actually confirmed the presence of a certain quantity of oil. Shell cheated in a major way, shrinking the world's proven reserves by nearly 15%. Caution As we have all learned from other business scandals, no case is isolated. Look for cheating by other countries and companies. This is not an isolated case. Bet on it.