Greenpeace Climbs Aboard West Hercules Rig. Protests Against Statoil’s Arctic Drilling Plans

Two Greenpeace activists wearing polar bear costumes have climbed aboard the West Hercules semi-submersible drilling rig at Westcon Shipyard in  Ølensvåg, Norway.

“I got news from my friends and colleagues home in Norway that they took action today at the Statoil oil rig, West Hercules, that is about to set out to drill for oil in the Arctic,” Martin Norman, Greenpeace Nordic, wrote today on his blog.

The photo, taken from Greenpeace Norge’s facebook page, shows one of the activists holding a piece of paper with “Arctic not for Sale” written on it. The West Hercules rig is seen in the background.

The organisation has been fighting against Arctic drilling, claiming that an oil spill in such a remote area would be catastrophic for the environment.

To remind, in 2011, Greenpeace activists climbed aboard the Leiv Eiriksson rig, off the coast of Greenland, trying to prevent the Scottish oil company Cairn from drilling in the waters of the world’s largest island. They were charged with trespassing and fined 20,000 DKK.