Canwest: Nfld. regulators put freeze on Chevron's deep-sea drilling plans

[tuvor]

OTTAWA — The agency that regulates oil drilling off the coast of Newfoundland has put on hold Chevron Canada's deep-sea drilling project until the company can prove it has taken adequate precautions against oil spills.

Chevron began exploratory drilling this month in the Orphan Basin, about 430 kilometres northeast of St. John's. The project is known as Lona O-55. At 2,600 metres below sea level, it will set a record for the deepest offshore project ever drilled in Canada.

However, environmentalists and some industry observers have raised questions about whether the company has adequate safeguards in place to prevent a major oil spill. This week, Canwest News Service revealed that the company warned regulators five years ago that it would be able to clean up at most 12 per cent of a large spill.

On Thursday, the Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Board announced it is imposing "special oversight measures" on the project "in light of the situation unfolding in the Gulf of Mexico and heightened public concern over drilling operations currently underway in the Newfoundland and Labrador offshore area."

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http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Nfld+regulators+freeze+Chevron+deep+drilling+plans/3053276/story.html

[Angry Dragon]

1. At least Chevron was honest about what they could do