ST JOHN'S, Newfoundland, June 17 (Reuters) - Chevron Corp CVX.N does not think it will be required to drill a relief well at its Orphan Basin exploration site off Newfoundland, a company official said on Thursday.

The company will abide by any regulations prompted by British Petroleum's BP.L massive oil spill in the Gulf, but requiring a relief well could actually increase the risk of an accident, said Mark MacLeod, Chevron's Atlantic Manager.

“I will have to say as you’re drilling a second well you’re exposing people to the risk of drilling each well, so you’re effectively doubling the risk,” MacLeod said.

Chevron is drilling the Lona 0-55 exploration well in the Orphan Basin, some 430 kilometers (270 miles) northeast of Newfoundland’s capital St. John’s.

Canadian regulators announced last month that Chevron must take additional safety measures, including new test results on its blowout preventer and undergo more safety inspections of its drillship.

“We believe all wells can be drilled incident free. We believe this well will be drilled incident free and we won’t need a relief well,” MacLeod said.

Chevron is drilling a well in more than 2,600 meters (8,530 feet) of water off the Canadian coast, making it twice as deep as the BP well that has been fouling the Gulf of Mexico with oil since April.

The April 20 explosion on an offshore rig leased by BP killed 11 workers and ruptured a deep-sea well, creating what U.S. President Barack Obama has called the worst environmental disaster America has ever faced. [SPILL]