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THE Arctic sea ice shrank to a new record low this week, but Shell has failed to capitalise on one of the . The oil giant has announced it will postpone its controversial drilling programme off Alaska’s north coast until next year.

According to the from the in Boulder, Colorado, . The previous record low, set in 2007, was 4.28 million square km. It’s not clear why so much ice has disappeared this summer, but a major storm in August may have helped to break up the ice.

The news comes as Shell admitted defeat in its efforts to drill in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas before the ice returns. The firm has overcome opposition and lawsuits from environmental advocates, but problems on the ground have ultimately frustrated its drilling bid.

“Shell has admitted defeat in its efforts to drill for oil off Alaska’s north coast before the ice returns”

The final straw was the failure of equipment on Shell’s oil spill recovery barge during tests near Seattle this week. An oil-collection “dome” cracked as it was being lowered from the ship into the water, for reasons that are still unclear, says Shell spokesman Curtis Smith.

“We are disappointed that the dome has not yet met our stringent acceptance standards; but, as we have said all along, we will not conduct any operation until we are satisfied that we are fully prepared to do it safely,” .

The firm will now wait out the winter – which . Less Arctic ice has been , drier autumns and colder winters in the two regions, although of the UK Met Office in Exeter points out that other factors affect winter temperatures too. “It’s too early to predict this winter,” he says.