abce certificate
New Articles
Friday, 05 December, 2008, 16:50 GMT | more >>

BP faces fresh Texas City fine



By Upstream staff 

The US Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) is set to fine UK supermajor BP $92,000 for breaches after a fatal blast at the Texas City refinery in 2005.

The explosion and fire at Texas City killed 15 people and left 180 peoplpe injured.

The citations, including one for a violation OSHA said may have led to another major accident, come from its post-blast monitoring of the plant.

BP has two weeks to contest the citations and penalties.

A BP spokesman told the BBC the company was studying the allegations before deciding how to proceed, but added that many of the points made were already being addressed.

BP is also being investigated by the US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) and US Justice Department over the explosion. An internal report, released in May, recommended sacking a number of company executives for failing to prevent the fatal blast.

US investigators have already rapped the company over the blast.

The CSB blamed lax safety culture at the BP, as well as cost-cutting, bad management culture and worker fatigue.

BP also has faced legal suits from workers and their families and paid millions in settlements.

The aftermath of the Texas City blast is not the only safety investigation that BP faces in the US.

The supermajor had to close part of its Prudhoe Bay oilfield in Alaska earlier this year, after leaks were discovered in one of its pipelines.


Monday, 23 July, 2007, 06:13 GMT  | last updated: Monday, 23 July, 2007, 06:13 GMT

e-mail this article to a colleague


to email:  from:
comments: