Obama administration approves Shell drilling off Alaska’s Arctic coast

The Obama administration granted Royal Dutch Shell final clearance on Monday to resume drilling for oil and gas in the environmentally fragile Arctic Ocean for the first time since 2012, a move green groups vowed to fight.

In 2012, Shell interrupted its drilling program in the Chukchi Sea off the northwest coast of Alaska after a series of mishaps, including losing control of an enormous rig, from which the Coast Guard had to rescue 18 workers, according to Reuters.

Harsh conditions in the area have discouraged other oil companies from laying claim. Now, Shell has repaired Fennica, an icebreaker the company leases that carries emergency well-plugging equipment. The ship had suffered a gash in its hull after hitting uncharted shoals off southern Alaska.

The Arctic is home to some 20 percent of the world's undiscovered oil and gas, according to U.S. government estimates.

Read more from Reuters.