The European Commission has proposed tightening the rules for deep-water drilling in the oil industry. The move follows April’s devastating BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Europe has more than 900 offshore wells, although only Norway currently allows drilling as deep as 1,300m (4,265ft), comparable to BP’s ill-fated Deepwater Horizon facility.
The Commission wants to ensure that firms drilling in European waters can cover the costs of a spill.
The BP disaster not only allowed more than 4m barrels of oil to pollute the sea – it also frightened oil regulators worldwide. If it could happen once, they thought, it could happen again.
The EU Energy Commissioner, Gunther Oettinger, wants any company drilling within European waters to prove it has either the cash in the bank to pay for a clean-up, or appropriate insurance to cover the cost.
No general moratorium
He also intends to change rules that currently make companies liable for costs if they are drilling up to 12 nautical miles from shore. He wants this distance extended to 200 nautical miles.
