Royal Dutch Shell's bid to drill in the Arctic this summer took another step forward on Friday when the U.S. Interior Department approved its oil spill response plan for the Chukchi Sea.
Shell's response plan would allow the company to rapidly contain a massive spill in the challenging Arctic environment, the department said.
"After an exhaustive review, we have confidence that Shell's plan includes the necessary equipment and personnel pre-staging, training, logistics and communications to act quickly and mount an effective response should a spill occur," said James Watson, head of the department's Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.
The department said Shell's plan would include a fleet of specially designed ships surrounding the drilling site with equipment able to recover about 80,000 barrels of oil per day in the event of a blowout.
MAJOR MILESTONE
Shell welcomed the acceptance of the response plan. The company has been working to get its Arctic exploration program back on track after repeated regulatory delays.
"Approval of our Chukchi Sea Oil Spill Response Plan is another major milestone on the path to drilling in the Alaska offshore this summer," Pete Slaiby, Alaska exploration manager for Shell, said in a statement.
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