Arctic oil drilling approval criticised

The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Enforcement and Regulation (BOEMRE) has given its conditional approval to oil drilling off the coast of Alaska.

Shell Exploration's plan for exploratory oil and gas drilling in the Beaufort Sea, in the Arctic Ocean, is now a step closer, but the move has drawn criticism from conservation groups.

Confirmation of the decision is dependent on Shell meeting a number of drilling and air quality permits as well as the federal approvals of the company's oil spill response plan.

"BOEMRE shouldn't have approved Shell's drilling plan without an adequate, approved oil spill plan demonstrating Shell's ability to clean up an oil spill in the Arctic's icy waters," a coalition of conservation groups, including the Alaska Wilderness League, the Sierra Club, Oceana and Defenders of Wildlife, among others, said in a statement.

They added that Shell's claim it could recover 95 per cent of oil spilt in Arctic waters is "unrealistic".

Meanwhile, Marathon Petroleum has announced plans to expand out from the Midwest of the US.