http:\/\/economictimes.indiatimes.com\/news\/international-business\/arctic-protesters-force-cairn-to-halt-drilling\/articleshow\/8726355.cms<\/p>\n
Reuters Africa<\/p>\n
4 JUN, 2011, 07.38PM IST,REUTERS LONDON: British oil explorer Cairn Energy said on Saturday it had suspended drilling from a rig off the coast of Greenland after environmental protesters breached an exclusion zone.<\/p>\n The company, which plans to drill a total of four wells off Greenland this summer, said Greenpeace activists boarded its “Leiv Eiriksson” drilling vessel and entered a restricted area.<\/p>\n “In accordance with the strict Health and Safety practices employed in this drilling programme and in order to ensure safe operating conditions, drilling has been suspended,” Cairn said.<\/p>\n Two days ago, Cairn filed a lawsuit against Greenpeace to deter it from disrupting its exploration plans in the Arctic, one of the last untapped hydrocarbon basins in the world.<\/p>\n It is seeking fines of up to 2 million euros ($2.89 million) for every day that protesters stop it from drilling.<\/p>\n Environmentalist argue drilling in the Arctic carries unacceptable risks because harsh conditions and the remoteness of the region will make it difficult to tackle an offshore spill.<\/p>\n Greenpeace confirmed 18 activists had scaled Cairn’s Arctil oil rig in the early hours of Saturday.<\/p>\n “Their mission – to find Cairn’s elusive Oil Spill Response Plan,” it said in a web posting. “Cairn is hiding it so we’re going to the one place where there must be a copy of it!”<\/p>\n Cairn is leading a charge into offshore Greenland, which explorers believe could hold billions of barrels of oil. Special thanks to Richard Charter<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" http:\/\/economictimes.indiatimes.com\/news\/international-business\/arctic-protesters-force-cairn-to-halt-drilling\/articleshow\/8726355.cms Reuters Africa 4 JUN, 2011, 07.38PM IST,REUTERS LONDON: British oil explorer Cairn Energy said on Saturday it had suspended drilling from a rig off the coast of Greenland after environmental protesters breached an exclusion zone. The company, which plans to drill a total of four wells off Greenland this summer, said Greenpeace activists boarded … Continue reading India Times: Arctic protesters force Cairn to halt drilling<\/span>
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\nExxon Mobil, Husky Energy and others also plan to drill there.<\/p>\n