RD Royal Dutch Petroleum Company

Cauley Geller Announces Extended Class Period of March 25, 1999 - March 22, 2004 in Class Action Lawsuit Against The Royal Dutch/Shell Group, Royal Dutch Petroleum Company, and The Shell Transport and Trading Company, PLC on Behalf of Investors NEW YORK, March 25 /PRNewswire/ -- The Law Firm of Cauley Geller Bowman & Rudman, LLP announced today that an amended complaint with an extended Class Period has been filed in the pending class action lawsuit that was previously filed in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey on behalf of all purchasers who purchased the securities of Royal Dutch Petroleum Company ("Royal Dutch") and/or The Shell Transport and Trading Company, PLC ("Shell Transport") (collectively "Royal Dutch/Shell") between March 25, 1999 and March 22, 2004, inclusive (the "Class Period"). A copy of the complaint filed in this action is available from the Court, or can be viewed on the firm's website at http://www.cauleygeller.com/show_case.asp?ccode=226&pcode=10&pp=4 . The complaint charges defendants Royal Dutch, Shell Transport, Shell Petroleum N.V., the Shell Petroleum Limited, Maarten van der Bergh, Judy Boynton, Malcolm Brinded, S.L. Miller, Harry J.M. Roels, Paul D. Skinner, M. Moody-Stuart, Jeroen van der Veer, and Philip R. Watts with violations of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and Rule 10b- 5 promulgated thereunder. Between March 25, 1999 and March 22, 2004, the defendants issued a series of material misrepresentations to the market concerning the Company's financial standing. More specifically, the defendants' statements during the Class Period were materially false and misleading because they failed to disclose and/or misrepresented the following adverse facts, among others: (1) that Royal Dutch/Shell had overstated its proved oil and gas reserve figures by 20%; (2) that Royal Dutch/Shell accomplished the overstatement by including in its proved oil and gas reserves figures, when its venture partnersdid not, estimates from the Gorgon Joint Venture in Australia and the Nigerian Projects in Africa when such projects did not meet industry and SEC standards for proved reserves; (3) that the inclusion of Gorgon Joint Venture in Australia and the Nigerian Projects in Africa and other projects was accomplished through the booking of its proved oil and gas reserve figures on the basis of initial letters of intent rather than on the basis of when such projects had been contracted; and (4) as a result, Royal Dutch/Shell's true market value was materially overstated at all relevant times. On January 9, 2004, Royal Dutch/Shell shocked the market by announcing that, following the results of an internal review, it would be restating 20% of its previously-reported proved hydrocarbon reserves. The Company further stated that the reserves that were affected were from 1996 to 2002, with the largest impact on the Company's reserves in Nigeria and Australia. Following this announcement, shares of Shell Transport fell 6.9% to close at $41.69 per share and shares of Royal Dutch fell 7.8% to close at $48.61 per share. On March 22, 2004, the last day of the Class Period, The Times (London) reported that the Company's auditor, KPMG, refused to sign its annual report because of concerns over the quality of information that it had received from the Company. If you bought Royal Dutch and/or Shell Transport securities between March 25, 1999 and March 22, 2004 inclusive, and you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than March 26, 2004. If you are a member of this class, you can join this class action online at http://www.cauleygeller.com/template8.asp?pcode=6&pp=1 . Any member of the purported class may move the Court to serve aslead plaintiff through Cauley Geller or other counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. Cauley Geller is a national law firm that represents investors and consumers in class action and corporate governancelitigation. It is one of the country's premiere firms in the area of securities fraud, with in-house finance and forensic accounting specialists and extensive trial experience. Since its founding, Cauley Geller has recovered in excess of two billion dollars on behalf of aggrieved shareholders. The firm maintains offices in Boca Raton, Little Rock and New York. If you have any questions about how you may be able to recover for your losses, or if you would like to consider serving as one of the leadplaintiffs in this lawsuit, you are encouraged to call or e-mail the Firm or visit the Firm's website at http://www.cauleygeller.com/ . Contact: CAULEY GELLER BOWMAN & RUDMAN, LLP Samuel H. Rudman, Esq. or David A. Rosenfeld, Esq. Client Relations Department: Jackie Addison or Sue Null P.O. Box 25438 Little Rock, AR 72221-5438 Toll Free: 1-888-551-9944 Fax: 1-501-312-8505 E-mail: DATASOURCE: Cauley Geller Bowman & Rudman, LLP CONTACT: Samuel H. Rudman, Esq. or David A. Rosenfeld, Esq., both of Cauley Geller Bowman & Rudman, LLP, +1-631-367-7100 Web site: http://www.cauleygeller.com/ http://www.cauleygeller.com/show_case.asp?ccode=226&pcode=10&pp=4 http://www.cauleygeller.com/template8.asp?pcode=6&pp=1

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