Shell oil rig arriving Thursday is just the start of Arctic drilling fleet
By Coral Garnick and Hal Bernton: Seattle Times staff reporters: Published 13 May 2015
Shell oil rig arriving Thursday is just the start of Arctic drilling fleet
The Polar Pioneer oil rig expected to arrive in Seattle on Thursday is the biggest piece of a 25-vessel fleet Shell Oil has mustered to resume its oil exploration effort in the Chukchi Sea off Alaska.
The Polar Pioneer oil rig expected to arrive in Seattle on Thursday is the biggest piece of a muscular fleet Shell Oil has mustered in the Pacific Northwest to resume its controversial high-stakes oil-exploration effort in the Chukchi Sea off Alaska’s North Slope.
The company will have 25 vessels in and out of the Pacific Northwest in preparation for the season, according to spokeswoman Kelly op de Weegh, but Shell has been tight-lipped about detailing its plans.
At Terminal 5 — now the center of a legal and political standoff between the city and the Port of Seattle — Shell contractor Foss Maritime plans to load drilling equipment and supplies for the two main vessels, the Polar Pioneer and the Noble Discoverer.