The U.S. government on Monday conditionally approved a plan by Royal Dutch Shell RDSA -0.97 % PLC to drill in the Arctic Ocean this summer, removing one of the biggest obstacles the energy company must overcome before it can explore for oil and natural gas in the Arctic’s frigid, isolated waters. The conditional approval from the Interior Department is contingent on Shell obtaining several additional federal permits, approvals Shell hopes government officials will make in the coming weeks. “We’d like to see them sooner rather than later,” Shell spokesman Curtis Smith said Monday. “We’re moving assets and people as if we’re going to achieve those permits. We have reason to believe we will.” Other obstacles, including ongoing legal battles brought by environmental […]