Petty Officer Third Class Melissa McKenzie of the Coast Guard’s 14th District in Honolulu confirmed the Coast Guard received word from Blue Marlin crew members that a group had boarded the vessel. The office did not receive a request for assistance. The Polar Pioneer left Malaysia in early March. It is one of two drill rigs Shell hopes to use for exploratory drilling during the summer open water season in the Chukchi Sea off Alaska’s northwest coast if it can obtain all necessary permits. Shell last drilled in Arctic Ocean waters in 2012. Using two vessels, the company drilled pilot holes and performed other preliminary work in both the Chukchi and the Beaufort seas. Shell was prohibited from drilling into oil-bearing rock because it did not have required response equipment on hand. The company experienced problems in the challenging conditions, culminating with the drill vessel Kulluk, which was used […]