By Reuters
21 February 2015 00:56 GMT
The Obama administration on Friday proposed standards on
exploratory drilling for oil and gas in US Arctic waters that would add
costs for energy companies but aim to protect against catastrophic
spills.
The rules,
proposed by the Department of Interior, require for the first time that
energy companies have access to equipment to contain potential well
blowouts, including rigs at the ready to drill relief wells if needed.
The
companies would also need to ensure quick access to capping stacks and
containment domes while drilling in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas off
Alaska, Reuters reported.
The
costs of the rules would be about $1.2 billion over 10 years, the
department estimated. The benefits of preventing or reducing the
severity of an oil spill are difficult to quantify, it said.
The
proposal comes in the wake of Shell's 2012 exploration season when the
company lost control of the Kulluk drilling rig, which ran aground in
harsh, frigid waters. The rules, which could shorten drilling seasons,
could also add costs to Statoil and ConocoPhillips which own leases in
the Arctic. The companies are not currently drilling in the waters.
The
rules are "designed to ensure safe energy exploration in unforgiving
Arctic conditions," said Brian Salerno, head of the Bureau of Safety and
Environmental Enforcement.
The
Beaufort and Chukchi seas are a huge potential resource for the US
containing an estimated 21.5 billion barrels of oil and 93.4 trillion
cubic feet of natural gas.
The public will have 60 days to comment on the rules which will not be finalised before this summer's drilling season.
A conservationist group applauded the plan.
"It's
a vast improvement to have Arctic-specific rules proposed so that
companies will not be operating simply as they do in warmer, more
developed Gulf of Mexico," said Marilyn Heiman, director of the Pew
Charitable Trusts' US Arctic project.
Shell
said it would review the rules, but added that the company takes
"unprecedented steps" to ensure safe operations in the Arctic and that
"often, that has meant going above and beyond" requirements.
Senator
Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican and the head of her chamber's
energy committee, said she would reserve judgment on the rules "until
it's demonstrated that these regulations will not unnecessarily block
investment".
The Obama
administration last month proposed making small regions of Alaskan
waters off limits to energy leasing to protect Native American hunting
and fishing.
