Shell gets licence for Donegal

THE Government has offered Shell a 16-year licence to drill for oil and gas off the Co Donegal coast.

Natural Resources Minister Noel Dempsey said that Shell E&P Ireland had applied in May for exploration licences in the 1,650 square kilometre North East Rockall Basin.

Mr Dempsey’s officials studied the Shell application and decided to offer the firm the licence but it has not accepted it to date.