Arctic offshore production wells approved off Alaska’s coast

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — U.S. regulators have approved a plan for the first oil and gas production in federal Arctic waters.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management on Wednesday said it has issued a conditional permit to a subsidiary of Houston-based Hilcorp for production wells on an artificial island in the Beaufort Sea.
The gravel island is proposed for a site 15 miles (24 kilometers) east of Prudhoe Bay, North America’s largest oil field.
BP Exploration Alaska drilled at the site i