Cairn Energy starts drilling off coast of Greenland despite green protestors
OIL explorer Cairn Energy started drilling two wells off the coast of Greenland, it said yesterday, a day after environmental protesters were removed from its rig in the Arctic.
Cairn said earlier in the week that Greenpeace activists who suspended themselves from the Leiv Eiriksson drilling rig for four days had not delayed its schedule. Harsh weather means there is a narrow summer window for Arctic exploration.
The Edinburgh-based company on Thursday filed a lawsuit against Greenpeace to deter it from disrupting its drilling plans in Greenland.
Cairn, which plans to drill a total of four wells in Greenland this summer, said drilling operations commenced at one well on its Atammik Block and one well on its Lady Franklin Block off the coast of West Greenland.
Greenpeace also tried to disrupt Cairn’s drilling plans in 2010. It believes tackling an offshore spill in the Arctic would be difficult due to the harsh conditions and remoteness.