Shell puts Arctic drilling on pause
Pressing pause: the Polar Pioneer
By Caroline Evans and news reports
28 August 2015 22:27 GMT
Shell has put its Arctic drilling campaign on hold for the time being as high winds rattle the Alaska coastline, according to reports.
The Anglo-Dutch supermajor started drilling an exploratory well at its Burger prospect in the Chukchi Sea off Alaska on 30 July.
On Friday, winds reached 29 miles per hour, with gusts of up to 37 miles per hour, wire service Associated Press reported.
According to local Houston reports, the Transocean Polar Pioneer stopped drilling recently and has been anchored over the well. Meanwhile, the Noble Discoverer, a second rig that was not active, has left the site.
A Shell spokesman did not know when drilling would resume, AP reported.
The temporary halt further delays a campaign that has seen
Shell has grappled with the harsh Arctic environment before. During its first foray into the region in 2012, a drilling unit broke free of its tow connections in increasingly high winds and ran aground.
There were no environmental impacts reported, but the rig sustained substantial damage and was ultimately written off for $200 million and sold for scrap.
Opponents of Shell's Arctic campaign say the region cannot be explored safely, but Shell says it is being cautious.
"Safe, efficient operations will ultimately determine the progress we make," Shell spokesman Curtis Smith told Upstream via email on 17 August.
The temporary halt is one more setback in a string of delays the company has had to deal with this time around in the Arctic. In July, an icebreaker en route to the drill site had to turn back after a hole was spotted in its hull. Once repaired, the ship's departure was delayed by protests.
In addition, because the icebreaker carried crucial safety equipment, Shell could not start drilling into oil-bearing zones until the vessel was in place at the drill site.
Furthermore, the company is not allowed drill more than one well at a time at Burger, a stipulation meant to minimise impacts to the local walrus population.
The delays are important, as Shell's already limited window to drill in the Arctic is waning: the company has until next month to wrap up operations there for the year.
"It's possible we will complete a well this summer but we’re not attaching a timeline to the number of feet drilled," Smith said in his 17 August email.