May 12th, 2015:
Letting Shell drill in Arctic could lead to catastrophic oil spill, experts warn
Shell to Add Firepower to BG Assets in East Africa LNG Race
Article by Paul Burkhardt published 12 May 2015 by Bloomberg.com
Royal Dutch Shell Plc’s $70 billion takeover of BG Group Plc will put Europe’s largest energy company in the middle of East Africa’s race to export natural gas and is set to boost the chances of Tanzania becoming a major supplier.
The acquisition would include stakes in three blocks off the coast that contain one-third of Tanzania’s estimated resource. This may give the East African nation an edge in the race to first exports of liquefied natural gas from the region over neighboring Mozambique, where discoveries could make it the world’s biggest producer of LNG after Qatar and Australia.
Here’s why Obama is approving Arctic drilling again
By Timothy Gardner: 12 May 2015
(Reuters) – For a leader who has made fighting climate change a priority, President Barack Obama’s decision to approve Royal Dutch Shell’s return to oil and gas exploration off Alaska was seen by many environmentalists as a contradiction.
On Tuesday, his administration upheld a 2008 Arctic lease sale, clearing an important hurdle for Shell. The Interior Department will now consider the company’s drilling plan, which could take 30 days. But Shell, which has already spent about $6 billion exploring the Arctic, expects to return to polar waters this summer and is already moving oil rigs to Alaska.
Shell’s Alaska Return Shows Arctic Drilling Defying Slump in Oil
Article by Rakteem Katakey and Mark Drajem published 12 May2015 by Bloomberg.com
Royal Dutch Shell Plc’s plan to return to the Arctic this year shows exploration in one of the world’s most remote regions is proving resilient against the slide in crude prices.
The U.S. Interior Department on Monday endorsed Shell’s plan to have two rigs drill as many as six exploratory wells in the Chukchi Sea off the coast of Alaska. Shell wants to resume work halted in 2012 when its main drilling rig ran aground and was lost. It also was fined for air pollution violations.
Shell, which has already committed $6 billion to the Arctic project, is seeking to unlock Arctic resources that may total 10 times the amount of oil and gas produced from the North Sea so far, according to its website. Arctic oil is also being chased by Russia, though drilling has been slowed by sanctions. While exploration drilling in Norway’s Arctic will slow in 2015 to half last year’s level, at least seven wells are planned in the Barents Sea.
Royal Dutch Shell: Giant arctic oil rig to be towed to Seattle this week; protests promised
Published May 11, 2015 Associated Press
SEATTLE – A giant floating oil rig currently anchored off Port Angeles, Washington, will be towed to Seattle this week despite the Seattle mayor’s assertion that the Port of Seattle can’t host the rig until it gets a new land-use permit, a Royal Dutch Shell spokesman said Monday.
In an email, Shell spokesman Curtis Smith said the 400-foot-long Polar Pioneer was scheduled to arrive at the Port of Seattle’s Terminal 5 “later in the week” to prepare for planned exploration in the Arctic Ocean.
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