Biden Administration Approves Alaska Oil Drilling Project

The Biden administration, brushing aside pressure from environmentalists, on Monday approved a controversial oil drilling project on Alaska's North Slope.

The Interior Department gave the green light to US energy giant ConocoPhillips to drill for oil at three sites in the federally owned National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska's pristine western Arctic.

During the 2020 presidential race, Joe Biden had vowed not to approve any new leases for oil and gas projects on Federal lands and his administration had been under intense pressure by environmental groups in recent days not to approve the so-called Willow Project.