Ice, extreme temperatures and a vulnerable environment are all surmountable challenges as drillers set out to hunt for oil in a new area of Norway’s Arctic Barents Sea, according to Statoil and other explorers. Studies by Statoil and 15 other companies such as Shell show there have been only a “few days” of sea ice in the northernmost blocks since 2003, and south of that even less, said Aashild Tandberg Skjaerseth, chair of the Barents Sea Exploration Collaboration, a venture set up by the companies. It’s also unlikely that any spill would reach the polar ice cap as oil and sea ice tend to drift in the same direction, she said. “Our main conclusion is that there is no health, environmental or safety challenge that is so significant that it can’t be appropriately mitigated,” Skjaerseth said. The findings were handed over to authorities this week and will be distributed […]