Shell idles rigs, takes charge for drilling ban
Royal Dutch Shell Plc said it had idled seven rigs and taken a $56 million charge second-quarter charge related to the US deepwater drilling ban and would not rule out reclaiming the cash from BP Plc. Shell, one of the biggest oil producers in the Gulf of Mexico, said it had idled rigs rather than move them elsewhere because the six-month duration of the drilling ban meant it was not profitable to redeploy rigs to other areas.
Royal Dutch Shell has said that it will suspend its offshore drilling program in the Arctic for the rest of 2013 in order to give time to ensure safety.