As promised, one of Shell Oil’s drill rigs left Unalaska Monday and is now bound for the Arctic.  

The Kulluk drill ship departed Unalaska early in the afternoon, along with two of Shell’s tugboats, the Guardsman and the Warrior. Alaska marine pilot Richard Entenmann navigated the Kulluk, and he says their crew seemed happy to be heading north.  

"They were eager," he says. "We were eager to get them out of here. It was good on all fronts.”

Entenmann says a few local vessels were on hand to help the Shell fleet today, including the James Dunlap tugboat. When it came time to move the Kulluk, the James Dunlap assisted Shell’s two tugs.

“The other two older tugs were somewhat conventional tugs and they have limitations," he says. "Enough horsepower, but hard to maneuver."

Shell’s fleet has been parked in Unalaska all summer, as the company waits for final clearance on its oil spill containment barge. Construction on that vessel in Bellingham, Washington, has been plagued by delays, and minor oil spills of its own. 

Shell can’t drill its exploratory wells in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas until the containment barge is done. But that’s not stopping them from sending the rest of the fleet north: The Aiviq and Fennica have been in the Chukchi Sea for most of the month. 

Entenmann says the Noble Discoverer drill rig is also supposed to leave Unalaska this week, accompanied by the Sisuaq supply vessel.