Environmental groups are aghast, while the oil industry and Alaskan officials. Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas exploration. Said Lois Epstein, Arctic program director of the Wilderness Society.
CHRONOLOGY
2016 | |
May 19 | BOEM sends a letter to Shell Gulf of Mexico Inc. relinquishing 113 Federal OCS Oil and Gas Leases. |
Mar 24 | BOEM memo to file detailing the review and closeout of operational and post-operational conditionally approved items for Shell's March 2015 Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan Revision 2. |
Jan 13 | BOEM accepts Shell’s request to withdraw the Shell Gulf of Mexico Inc. and Shell Offshore Inc. (Shell) Revised Outer Continental ShelfLease Exploration Plan Revision 2, Chukchi Sea, Alaska, approved May 11, 2015, and Revised Outer Continental Shelf Lease Exploration Plan, Camden Bay, Beaufort Sea, Alaska, approved August 4, 2011 (hereinafter 'EPs'). |
Jan 12 | BOEM memo to file regarding the Shell EP Approval Condition #17 - SEMS Third-Party Audit Report Review |
Jan 7 | Shell informs BOEM that no further exploration activities will be conducted under the Revised Camden Bay, Beaufort Sea (Camden Bay) Exploration Plan and Revised Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan (Revision 2) dated May 4, 2011 and March 31, 2015, respectively. Shell withdraws each of the aforementioned Exploration Plans. |
2015 | |
Nov 30 | Shell provides BOEM with the Seasonal Operating Report pursuant to Item No, 18 of the BOEM May 11, 2015, conditional approval of the Shell Revised Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan (Revision 2) March 31, 2015. |
Nov 16 | BOEM thanks National Weather Service for collaboration with the BOEM during the Shell 2015 open water exploration-drilling season. |
Oct 28 | BOEM request that Shell provide plans for site clearance and intentions regarding the 2012 Camden Bay Exploration Plan (EP) and the 2015 Chukchi Sea (Revision 2) EP. |
Aug 25 | BOEM confirms Shell has fulfilled the pre-operational requirements listed in the May 11, 2015, conditional approval of the Shell Revised Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan (Revision 2) of March 31, 2015. |
Aug 12 | BOEM sends Shell a letter declining to approve Shell's Aug. 6, 2015 request for a deviation from Condition #2. |
Aug 6 | Shell requests a deviation from condition #2 of the EP approval. |
May 11 | After a comprehensive review and consideration of comments received from the public, stakeholders, and federal and state partner agencies and tribes, BOEM conditionally approves Shell Gulf of Mexico, Inc.’s revised multi-year Exploration Plan for the Chukchi Sea, which had been deemed submitted April 10, 2015. |
May 01 | 21-day comment period for Shell's Revised EP ends (see item for April 10, 2015). |
Apr 20 | 10-day comment period for the EA ends (see item for April 10, 2015). |
Apr 10 | Upon completing a preliminary review of the Revised Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan received from Shell on March 31, 2015, BOEM determines that all the required components are in place to justify a full review, and deems the EP submitted. The Bureau now has 30 calendar days to analyze and evaluate the revised EP in accordance with federal law. As part of this analysis, the Bureau will prepare a site-specific Environmental Assessment (EA) of the proposed exploration activities pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act. This announcement initiates two separate (but partially concurrent) comment periods: A 10-day comment period for the public to comment on any issues that BOEM should consider in preparing the EA for the revised EP (this comment period ends at midnight Eastern Time on April 20, 2015); and a 21-day comment period for the public to submit comments on the revised EP (this comment period ends at midnight Eastern Time on May 1, 2015). |
Mar 31 | BOEM receives from Shell Gulf of Mexico, Inc., a new version of their Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan. This version, still titled “Revision 2,” replaces the previous “Revision 2” received by BOEM on Aug. 28, 2014. BOEM analysts begin assessing this Revised EP to determine whether it contains all required elements to initiate a full review. BOEM staff have 15 working days to conclude this preliminary assessment.
Upon a “deemed submitted” announcement, BOEM has 30 calendar days to approve the plan, disapprove the plan, or require modifications. |
2014 | |
Aug 28 | BOEM’s Alaska Region receives from Shell Gulf of Mexico, Inc., a revised version of their Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan. This is a draft version, still titled “Revision 2,” and it replaces the previous “Revision 2” submitted to BOEM on Nov. 6, 2013. Plan | Appendix It is important to understand that BOEM is not taking public comment on this document at this time, as this Revised EP has not yet been formally “deemed submitted.” |
Jun 19 | |
May 01 | Shell’s Response to BOEM’s Request for Additional Information (RFAI) on the Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan. |
Jan 14 | BOEM sends a second Request for Additional Information to Shell. The letter details the additional information the Bureau would need in order to formally 'deem submitted' Shell's Revised Exploration Plan for the Chukchi Sea. |
2013 | |
Dec 20 | Shell delivers to BOEM a letter and attachments responding to BOEM's request for additional information. |
Nov 29 | BOEM's Alaska OCS Region sends a Request for Additional Information to Shell. The letter details the additional information the Bureau would need in order to formally 'deem submitted' Shell's Revised Exploration Plan for the Chukchi Sea (see Nov. 6, 2013 entry, below). |
Nov 26 | BOEM's Alaska OCS Region receives from Shell its 2014 Integrated Operations Plan (IOP) for the Chukchi Sea. (The IOP submittal is in response to recommendations within the Department of the Interior’s March 2013 report Review of Shell’s 2012 Alaska Offshore Oil and Gas Exploration Program. Section II.A of this report recommends that Shell “should develop, and submit to DOI, a comprehensive and integrated operational plan describing in detail its future drilling program.”) BOEM is not taking public comment on the IOP, as the document is informational only. BOEM staff will coordinate review of the IOP with members of the Alaska Interagency Working Group. |
Nov 06 | Shell Gulf of Mexico, Inc., files a revised version of its Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan with BOEM's Alaska OCS Region office. It is important to understand that BOEM is not taking public comment on this issue at this time, as this Revised EP has not yet been formally 'deemed submitted.' Per standard procedure with all EPs received, BOEM staff begins assessing the Revised EP filed by Shell to determine whether it contains all required elements to initiate a more comprehensive review. BOEM staff have 15 working days to conclude this assessment.
Upon a “deemed submitted” announcement, the Bureau has 30 calendar days to approve the plan, disapprove the plan, or require modifications. |
Mar 14 | Department of the Interior Releases Assessment of Shell's 2012 Arctic Operations. |
2012 | |
Aug 30 | Bureau of Ocean Energy Management letter to Shell regarding revision to Shell's 2012 Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan to address increased emissions. |
Jun 13 |
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Jun 11 | The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Incident Take Statements and Biological Opinions for incidental harassment authorizations under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. |
Jun 06 | Shell letter regarding the fulfillment of Condition #5 of the Revised Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan. |
Jun 01 | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Letters of Authorization (LOA) to Shell for the incidental and intentional take of polar bears and Pacific walruses. |
May 11 | Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Completion of Endangered Species Act Section 7 consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. |
May 08 | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Revised Biological Opinion and Conference Opinion for Oil and Gas Activities in the Beaufort and Chukchi Sea Planning Areas. |
May 02 | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration incidental harassment authorizations for Shell's energy exploration activities in shallow waters in the Arctic. |
Feb 17 | Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement letter regarding Shell's amended Chukchi Sea Oil Spill Response Plan. |
Jan 26 | Shell amended Chukchi Sea Oil Spill Response Plan. |
2011 | |
Dec 23 | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Revised Biological Opinion and Conference Opinion for Oil and Gas Activities in the Beaufort and Chukchi Sea Planning Areas. |
Dec 16 | BOEM Issues Conditional Approval for Shell 2012 Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan | Letter to Shell |
Dec 14 | Environmental Assessment | Finding of No Significant Impact |
Nov 16 | |
May 11 | Shell submits Chukchi Sea EP Revision 1. This document superseded the original Shell Chukchi Sea 2012 Exploration plan, which had been submitted in 2009 and approved by BOEM in 2010. Exploration Plan | Appendices and Attachments |
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - January 23, 2013) - Pure Nickel Inc. (TSX: NIC) announces results from its 2012 exploration program at the MAN project, Alaska. This was the fifth season that Pure Nickel’s joint venture partner, Itochu Corporation, has funded exploration. With this year’s work program of US$4.2 million, Itochu has expended approximately US$21 million on exploration of the property, and currently holds a 30% ownership interest. The joint venture agreement allows Itochu to earn up to a 75% interest by incurring US$40 million of exploration expenditures.
The work program included soil geochemical surveys (3,010 samples collected), detailed mapping, 48 line kilometers of IP (induced polarization) geophysical surveys and 2,233 meters of diamond core drilling. The program was designed to identify areas of potential magmatic Ni-Cu-PGE sulphide mineralization at surface or at shallow depths. Drilling was used to test soil geochemical and/or IP anomalies for the presence of sulphides in bedrock.
The work identified several new sulphide occurrences on the Alpha complex, with a number of soil geochemical and IP anomalies still to be tested. Of the eight drill holes completed, seven targeted soil or IP anomalies, and one hole was drilled to investigate magmatic stratigraphy. Minor amounts of magmatic sulphide mineralization were encountered in most of the drill holes, but assay results from these intervals were generally not significant. In hole PNI-12-063, however, highly anomalous Ni-Cu-PGE mineralization was intersected across a significant interval. The hole targeted partially coincident IP and soil geochemical anomalies in the southern part of the Alpha complex, and returned an intersection of 80.95 meters apparent width grading 35 ppb Au, 106 ppb Pt, 174 ppb Pd (315 ppb Au+Pt+Pd), 0.17% Cu and 0.25% Ni from 146.55 meters to 227.5 meters.
A limited gold prospecting program was also completed during the summer to attempt to locate the lode source of the many placer gold occurrences in the area. Results were encouraging, with one sample of glacially transported material assaying 14.0 g/t Au and 4.6% Ni. The bedrock source of this sample is unknown, but additional gold prospecting will be undertaken in 2013 in an attempt to trace the source.
The 2012 field season demonstrated the successful application of multifaceted, field based work programs in locating sulphide mineralization at or near surface. Numerous geochemical and geophysical targets remain to be tested in 2013.
Jon Findlay, Ph.D., P.Geo is the designated Qualified Person for this project.
About the MAN Property
The MAN project targets Nickel (Ni) – Copper (Cu) – Platinum Group Element (PGE) mineralization in a series of mafic-ultramafic complexes located approximately 260 km southeast of Fairbanks, Alaska. Four such complexes are present on the property, Alpha, Beta, Canwell and Rainy. Sulphide showings on the property have returned extremely high metal concentrations in grab samples, including 2.0% Ni, 1.3% Cu and 2.4 g/t Au+Pt+Pd from the East Rainy showing, 1.39% Ni, 0.48% Cu and 4.0 g/t Au+Pt+Pd from the Bird’s Beak showing, and 6.7% Ni, 1.0% Cu and 1.5 g/t Au+Pt+Pd from the Tres Equis showing. Pure Nickel Inc.’s work programs are currently focussed on identification of economic deposits of disseminated to massive Ni-Cu-PGE sulphide mineralization in the mafic-ultramafic complexes.
About Pure Nickel Inc.
Pure Nickel is a mineral exploration company with a diverse collection of nickel, copper and platinum group element exploration projects in North America. The Company is active on its flagship MAN property, and the Salt Chuck property in the Alaskan panhandle, where a new gold discovery was recently announced on December 11, 2012. In addition, the Company is actively pursuing other, non-nickel properties in North America and overseas.
Forward-Looking Statements
Some of the statements contained herein may be forward-looking statements which involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization and resources, exploration results, expectations, plans, and objectives of Pure Nickel are forward-looking statements that involve various risks. The following are important factors that could cause Pure Nickel’s actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements: changes in the world wide price of mineral commodities, general market conditions, risks inherent in mineral exploration, risks associated with development, construction and mining operations, the uncertainty of future exploration activities and cash flows, and the uncertainty of access to additional capital. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events may differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Pure Nickel undertakes no obligation to update such forward-looking statements if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements.
![Exploration Exploration](https://steelguru.com/uploads/news/white_rock_announces_successful_zinc_exploration_program_in_alaska_48762.jpg)
The TSX Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
For further information: | |
CHF Investor Relations | The Howard Group Investor Relations |
Cathy Hume | Jeff Walker |
T. (416) 868-1079 x 231 | T. (888) 221-0915 |
Email: [email protected] | Email: [email protected] |
Website: www.chfir.com | Website: www.howardgroupinc.com |
Pure Nickel Inc. | |
David McPherson | |
President and CEO | |
T. (416) 644-0066 | |
Email: [email protected] | |
Website: www.purenickel.com |