Washington, August 19 (RHC)-- The Barack Obama administration has granted Royal Dutch Shell final approval to resume drilling for oil and gas in the Arctic Ocean for the first time since 2012 despite widespread protests from environmental groups.

Shell first obtained drilling permits in the Arctic during the George W. Bush administration, but drilling stopped in 2012 after a series of mishaps. The permit was issued after Shell’s icebreaking ship arrived at the drill site carrying a required piece of equipment known as a capping stack. The equipment arrived on the same ship Greenpeace protesters temporarily blocked from departing Portland, Oregon, by hanging suspended from the St. Johns Bridge for more than 40 hours.

Shell now says it may drill its first well as early as this summer. The Interior Department has said that there is a 75 percent chance of "one or more large spills" once Shell begins drilling.