Shell Asks Court's Opinion

Excerpt from an article in

The New York Times

Thursday, March 01, 2012

To Avoid a Suit, Shell Asks Court’s Opinion

By CLIFFORD KRAUSS

HOUSTON — In an attempt to avoid a last-minute challenge from environmental groups that could delay its plans to begin drilling for oil this summer off the coast of Alaska, Shell asked a federal court on Wednesday to review its Alaska Arctic oil spill response plan and decide whether it complied with the law’s requirements.

Shell received tentative approval from the Interior Department two weeks ago for its spill response plan, a crucial step toward clearing the way for the oil company to begin drilling in the Chukchi Sea this year. Several more regulatory barriers remain, but the company hopes it can get past all the hurdles and expected appeals in the next few months, while the narrow window for summer drilling in ice-free waters remains open.

“This pre-emptive action is an attempt to avoid a legal challenge on the eve of operations,” said Bill Tanner, a Shell spokesman. “We are anticipating that they were going to sue us.”

In a statement, Shell said it was filing the request for a declaratory judgment against 13 environmental groups, including Greenpeace and the Sierra Club, which have been resisting Shell’s drilling plans for five years.