"Shell Oil had its problems this year drilling off the Arctic coast of Alaska, but on Wednesday it declared success on the final day of operations for the season. (Only a brief autumn exploration season is allowed by regulators because of ice floes.)"

"Thick ice delayed operations in the spring. Then, one of the drilling ships dragged its anchors and nearly collided with the coast. And finally an oil spill containment barge was damaged during certification tests.

In the end, the company did not have time to drill in the underwater zones that contain oil.

But after years of legal and regulatory challenges, Shell did begin drilling two wells — one in the Beaufort Sea, and a second in the Chukchi Sea — the first time oil exploration was conducted in the two Arctic seas simultaneously in decades."

Clifford Krauss reports for the New York Times' Green blog October 31, 2012. [2]