Oil giant’s US president says hugely controversial drilling
operations off Alaska will stop for ‘foreseeable future’ as drilling
finds little oil and gas
Shell has abandoned its controversial drilling operations in the Alaskan Arctic in the face of mounting opposition.
Its decision, which has been welcomed by environmental campaigners,
follows disappointing results from an exploratory well drilled 80 miles
off Alaska’s north-west coast. Shell said it had found oil and gas but
not in sufficient quantities.
The move is a major climbdown for the Anglo-Dutch group which had
talked up the prospects of oil and gas in the region. Shell has spent
about $7bn (£4.6bn) on Arctic offshore development in the hope there would be deposits worth pursuing, but now says operations are being ended for the “foreseeable future.”
Shell is expected to take a hit of around $4.1bn as a result of the decision.
The company has come under increasing pressure from shareholders
worried about the plunging share price and the costs of what has so far
been a futile search in the Chukchi Sea.
The Transocean Polar Pioneer, a semi-submersible drilling unit leased by Shell, was used to explore Arctic deposits.
Photograph: Daniella Beccaria/AP
