US authorities have approved drilling in federal waters offshore Alaska, according to Reuters.

As soon as next month the US unit of Italy’s oil giant Eni could be able to act upon Arctic leases it has long held.

That is because the administration of President Donald Trump, through the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), has issued Eni US a permit for oil exploration from Spy Island, an artificial island in the Beaufort Sea.

This approval makes Eni the first company allowed to explore for hydrocarbons in Alaskan federal waters since 2015.

President Trump has made it an issue that he will unshackle energy companies from so-called burdensome over-regulation, in particular where protections were put in place by his predecessor President Barack Obama.