South Africa Court Blocks Shell's Oil Exploration

A South African court has halted oil giant Shell&#039;s seismic testing for oil and gas along the country&#039;s eastern coastline, pending a final ruling.<br />Shell says it had paused operations while it reviewed the judgement.<br />South Africa&#039;s Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe had condemned the project&#039;s critics, saying they wanted to deprive Africa of energy resources.<br />High Court Judge Gerald Bloem says that Shell&#039;s right to explore the waters near the Wild Coast was awarded on the basis of a substantially flawed consultation process.