Shell has had a busy week which started on Thursday last week. First of all, the company went to work to try and plug a fault in a flowline that sent 2,000 barrels (approximately 90,000 gallons) of oil leaking into the Gulf of Mexico. The oil slick the leak has caused is reminiscent of the Deepwater Horizon Spill of 2010
The Associated Press put the figures together and concluded that there have been 147 spills and 500,000 gallons spilled into the Gulf of Mexico since 2012. Shell claim to have wrapped up the cleaning effort, according to a statement. Shell said, “The joint response mobilized more than 150 people, five on-water recovery vessels for skimming, and aerial assets to respond to the sheen…There have been no reported impacts to the coastline or the fisheries.”
This once again catches the attention of opinion makers around the world and emphasizes the need for a moving away from fossil fuels due to the environmental threat substances such as oil are.
Vicky Wyatt, a Greenpeace campaigner, spoke to the Guardian, saying: “The last thing the Gulf of Mexico needs is another oil spill. The oil and gas industry’s business-as-usual mentality devastates communities, the environment, and our climate. Make no mistake, the more fossil fuel infrastructure we have, the more spills and leaks we’ll see. It’s past time to keep it in the ground for good.”
To appease some of their critics, Shell has launched a new division named New Energies that will focus on renewable energy. The new division will see Shell using some energy applications they have been unfamiliar with in the past, such as wind power. The company has not formally confirmed that they have launched the division, however, insiders are saying it has $1.7 billion funding and will work alongside the Integrated Gas Division within the company.
The move comes after Total opened their very own renewable energies division within their company in an attempt to show the world that the calls for companies to move away from fossil fuels are being heard.
