Putin tours new rig in Arctic oil drive

While politicians in the US debate whether or not to drill for oil in our coastal waters, Russia is charging ahead with a bold plan to pump oil from under the Arctic Ocean.

Vladimir Putin, in his role as prime minister, toured a new oilrig built in the far northern Russian port of Severodvinsk. The new rig is the first designed to withstand the extreme conditions of the Arctic Ocean - it can withstand impacts from Arctic pack ice and operate in temperatures of more than 50 degrees below zero.

Russia hopes to exploit vast reserves of oil and natural gas believed to exist under the Arctic Ocean. In addition to the new rig, Putin also announced tax breaks and incentives to encourage drilling in explored, but so far untapped oil fields in northern Siberia.

Russia is already the world's second largest producer of oil, right behind Saudi Arabia. Throw in natural gas production and Russia is the world's largest energy exporter.