Despite its decision to abandon offshore drilling in Alaska this fall, Shell still has its eye on the Arctic.
The company filed an appeal on Tuesday, asking the federal government to reconsider extending its drilling rights in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas, which are set to expire by 2020.
In October, the Interior Department’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement turned down Shell’s request to extend its leases in the region (the Department also turned down a request from the Norwegian oil company Statoil). The Bureau said Shell had not laid out specific plans for further exploration, a requirement for extensions.
Shell bought its leases starting nearly a decade ago, but only managed to drill one full exploratory well this past summer, which came up dry. The company argued its efforts were delayed by forces outside its control, including regulatory restrictions and court challenges.
In a statement issued today, Shell said those arguments stand.
But that doesn’t mean Alaskans should expect the company to return any time soon. In that same statement, the company wrote, “The appeal does not change our recent decision to stop exploration offshore Alaska for the foreseeable future.”
Rachel Waldholz covers energy and the environment for Alaska's Energy Desk, a collaboration between Alaska Public Media, KTOO in Juneau and KUCB in Unalaska. Before coming to Anchorage, she spent two years reporting for Raven Radio in Sitka. Rachel studied documentary production at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, and her short film, A Confused War won several awards. Her work has appeared on Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Marketplace, among other outlets.
rwaldholz (at) alaskapublic (dot) org | 907.550.8432 | About Rachel
