No Shell Alaska drilling this year

This video says about itself:

#ShellFAIL: Private Arctic Launch Party Goes Wrong

This was a private send-off for Shell’s arctic rigs (Kulluk and Noble discoverer) at the Seattle Space Needle. The rigs were visible outside the window. Incredibly, there was an obvious malfunction of the model rig that was supposed to pour drinks for guests.

More here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InL4ONJh9fA

And this is Shell’s new ad campaign: http://www.arcticready.com

From DutchNews.nl:

Shell stops Arctic drilling after containment dome is damaged

Monday 17 September 2012

Anglo Dutch oil giant Shell has halted plans to drill for oil off Alaska this year because a containment dome to cap any spills has been damaged, the company said on Monday.

The time needed to repair the dome means Shell will not have enough time to drill deep enough to find oil this year, the company said in a statement.

Instead, Shell will instead drill a number of shallow holes which will be capped in preparation for next year’s test drilling.

‘We are disappointed that the dome has not yet met our stringent acceptance standards, but as we have said all along, we will not conduct any operation until we are satisfied that we are fully prepared to do it safely,’ the statement said.

According to Bloomberg, Shell has invested $4.5bn on the offshore leases and equipment, and fought at least 50 lawsuits from environmental groups who are opposed to any drilling in Arctic waters.

See also here.

Plans to drill for oil and gas resources off the coast of Alaska have been abandoned following damage to the spill cleanup barge Arctic Challenger, oil company Shell announced yesterday: here.

Shell Halts Offshore Oil Drilling in Arctic for 2012: here.

Royal Dutch Shell took Greenpeace International to court in Amsterdam on Friday in an attempt to have it banned from holding any protest within 500 yards of any Shell property: here.

Arctic expert predicts final collapse of sea ice within four years: here.

Nigeria: Key Hearing in Court Case On Oil Giant Shell’s Nigerian Oil Pollution: here.