BSEE approves full drilling of Burger J well in US Arctic
Aug. 17, 2015
The US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) has given approval to Royal Dutch Shell PLC to drill to total depth the Burger J exploratory well in the Chukchi Sea following the arrival of a capping stack staged on the M/V Fennica vessel.
Shell received approval in July to drill only the top sections of the well, but was prohibited from drilling into oil-bearing zones until a capping stack was present and deployable within 24 hr (OGJ Online, July 23, 2015). The company on Aug. 6 submitted a plan to modify the Burger J application for permit to drill.
“Now that the required well control system is in place and can be deployed, Shell will be allowed to explore into oil-bearing zones for Burger J,” said Brian Salerno, BSEE director.
Shell remains limited to the top section of the Burger V well since the prospects lie fewer than 15 miles apart. The company has until late September to drill both wells.
