CVG have an article up regarding the situation with HL2 and that a November release date is extremely likely now. They also said that HL2 is ready to be ceritifed by PEGI (Pan European Games Information age rating system) for classification. Although VU Games themselves haven't said anything on the situation yet, and these are basically just rumours, this could indicate that HL2's gold announcement is really right around the corner now. Here's a slice from the article:

"Speaking under strict conditions of anonymity, an industry insider squealed earlier informing us that 'as far as Vivendi is concerned, the game [Half-Life 2] is finished' before saying that the title had been passed to PEGI (Pan European Games Information age rating system) for classification, which in turn passed the sequel to the BBFC for certification."

Don't forget to check out the full article.