Ashim Abhinav Ekka Section C 11020841133

Case Study: Decommissioning the Brent Spar

Learning from the incident:

1. Sometimes things that are legal are not necessarily acceptable to the public: Even when Shell had got a legal approval from the British Government to dispose the buoy in the Atlantic waters at North Feni Ridge, off the coast of Scotland, the decision was not supported by the Greenpeace activists and they protested against it. The protest was supported by the people too and finally the German Government had to object the decision to dispose of Brent Spar. Hence, we can say that before starting new projects, it should be brought into the public sphere for discussion, so public concern s can be taken into consideration during the planning phases. 2. Taking issues to international level: As seen in case, the permission to dispose the Brent Spar was approved by British Government, but was later formally objected by German government. If it was taken internationally earlier it wouldnt have happened. From this, we learned to take issues to an international level, even if its individual actions take pl ace within one nation's borders. 3. Reputation more valuable than the commodity: In this case, due to all the debates , Shells reputation was getting destroyed. This is a very negative thing for any company. If its reputation would have been destroyed, then it would have taken a long time for the company to regain it. Hence, due to a single product, the companys reputation was in the hang. The company should always maintain its credibility and trustworthiness.

4. Understanding the Consumers: Consumer is the most important for the company. And if the consumer is very environment conscious, then it becomes very difficult to make them buy the brand that has its image tainted. This will be against the morals of the consumer. So, a company should always be environment conscious and should always work keeping the environmen tal responsibility in mind. 5. Keeping the case simple: Shell did not present its case properly. If they would have done it, their arguments would have been more effective. If any project is to be carried out, the common people should understand exactly w hat is it all about and what are its consequences. There should be no grey areas. If not done, then the trust for the company in the common peoples mind will be damaged which no company would want.