By Brett Ruskin, CBC News Posted: Jun 22, 2016
Nova Scotia’s offshore regulator has given Shell Canada permission to resume drilling the first of two exploratory wells, following an incident earlier this year which saw a two-kilometre-long pipe to fall to the ocean floor.
The Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board (CNSOPB) said drilling can resume Wednesday, but Shell Canada faces new restrictions that will remain in place until the regulator completes further reviews.
Shell Canada’s contracted drill ship, the Stena IceMAX, will now have to disconnect from the sub-sea well head once waves reach five metres in height. Previously, the limit was eight metres.