Shell Tries to Control North Sea Oil Leak

Oil engineering consultant Steve earns 550,000 Australian dollars (US$560,000) a year and is seeing new graduates signed up for six-figure salaries. These pay rates, along with other rising costs the oil industry cannot control, are sharpening its focus on mass production methods, clever supply deals and investment in innovation. “For oil and gas executives, the need for operational excellence has never been greater,” says industry consultants Bain & Co in a March 1 study on costs.

LONDON/ANCHORAGE, Alaska – An oil rig that ran aground in Alaska on New Year’s Eve in “near hurricane” conditions dragged two vessels trying to control it more than 10 miles (16 km) toward a wave-battered rocky shore before the crews cut it loose to save themselves. The stricken Kulluk oil rig is owned by Royal Dutch/Shell and is a vital part of its controversial Arctic oil drilling program, which has encountered several problems.

Danish Maersk Oil on Wednesday shut down a North Sea rig after oil was observed on the surrounding water.Production will resume when the technicians have located the source of the leak and made the necessary repairs, the company said, adding that a later surveillance sweep by a helicopter showed that "the leakage has stopped".Early in the day another helicopter crew first noticed the leak.