OPINION OF A REGULAR CONTRIBUTOR
John,
Permit me an observation about the very public hub-bub over Shell’s drilling plans for the off-shore US Arctic this summer.
Shell plans to drill in the US off-shore Arctic have been bitterly contested in the media, the courts, and the halls of Congress. Shell has apparently managed to overcome the technical and political obstacles and will be permitted to drill this summer, weather permitting. Given all the attention that will be focused on these exploratory drilling operations it is unlikely that there will be any sort of major ‘problem’ during drilling operations. It is also highly likely that these exploratory test wells will be successful and that the battle over oil production from off-shore US Arctic will move into its next phase.