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January 9, 2013

Mishaps by Shell Prompt Admin Review of Arctic Drilling 
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The Obama administration has launched a review of offshore oil drilling
in the Arctic following a cascading series of blunders and mishaps by
the oil giant Shell. Shell’s recent troubles culminated when its drill
rig ran aground last week off the Alaskan coast, sparking concerns of a
potential spill. Past problems have included safety and environmental
violations on its vessels and the failure during a test of a device
meant to control a gushing well. Government officials say the new 60-day
review could potentially limit or halt Shell’s ambitions for Arctic
drilling. The escalating issues have followed repeated warnings by
environmental groups that Shell is unprepared for the harsh and
dangerous conditions associated with Arctic drilling. Dan Howells of
Greenpeace told The New York Times: "We've repeatedly been told Shell is
the best in the business, and so we can only conclude after this series
of mishaps that the best in the business is simply not good enough for
the Arctic." The Coast Guard has launched a separate investigation into
the grounding of Shell's drill rig last week.

 

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