Can Shell afford Arctic oil? | Karl Mathiesen

How much oil would make Shell's controversial Arctic bid profitable? What would be the impact of a catastrophic oil spill? And can the venture succeed as the world adapts to climate change?

As Shell's Polar Pioneer rig whirrs through the Chukchi sea bedrock this week, there's a lot riding on what it finds.

This is the first time the Anglo-Dutch giant's star-crossed Arctic programme will drill deep enough to hit oil. The company has reportedly spent $7bn (4.5bn) on getting to this point, including replacing its prize Kulluk rig after it ran aground off Alaska in 2012. For them to gain any of this back, a number of things need to happen.