On New Year’s eve, Royal Dutch Shell watched its unmanned offshore drilling rig, the Kulluk, ground itself just off Kodiak Island, Alaska, where it still sits today.
This is the latest development in a series of problems Shell has experienced while attempting to move the Kulluk from Unalaska/Dutch Harbor, Alaska to the Seattle area for winter maintenance.
The offshore oil rig aground near Kodiak Island, Alaska. (US Coast Guard photo)
On December 21, a Shell-contracted vessel embarked on this voyage with the Kulluk in tow. Within a week, the vessels encountered a large winter storm, and the crisis began.
First, the towline connecting the Kulluk to the tow vessel broke. An emergency towline connection was established, but then the tow vessel lost power to all of its engines. A fleet of rescue vessels arrived, and the original tow vessel regained power. However, four attempts to reestablish towlines each resulted in the Kulluk floating freely in the rough seas.
The Kulluk’s 18 person crew was evacuated by a Coast Guard helicopter as the storm grew to 50-mile an hour winds and 20-foot seas.
The drifting Kulluk ran aground on December 31. It contains 143,000 gallons of diesel and 12,000 of other petroleum products. So far, it appears that no environmental damage or major injuries have occurred.
Currently, a 250 member Anchorage-based command team comprised of representatives from the Coast Guard, the State of Alaska, and Shell are working to resolve the crisis. Stormy weather has prevented efforts to move the Kulluk to a safe harbor on Kodiak Island or put people on the Kulluk to assess its condition. Flyovers continue to monitor the Kulluk.
The Kulluk was used this fall to begin drilling an exploratory oil well in the Beaufort Sea, off Alaska’s west coast. This unfolding crisis adds to the concerns of whether Shell is really prepared to drill safely in the Arctic. They have faced a number of setbacks including when their oil spill containment dome was damaged during testing and when a drilling rig received a Coast Guard citation for problems with safety and pollution discharge equipment.
Do you think Shell is ready for the difficulties of Arctic offshore drilling?
Where the Kulluck sits aground. (Anchorage Daily News)
