Beaufort and Chukchi Sea lease sales cancelled.

• Position: BUSINESS

The US Department of the Interior cancelled the two potential Arctic offshore lease sales scheduled under the current five-year offshore oil and gas leasing program for 2012-2017. The decision follows Shell's announcement of its exploration results at the Burger prospect in the Chukchi Sea and that the company will cease further exploration activity in offshore Alaska for the foreseeable future.

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement also denied requests...