Oil company not fulfilling obligation after oil spill in Peru – Peruvian Govt. says

Feb 15, 2022 News

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Kaieteur News – During a recent interview with a Peruvian television station, the country’s new Minister of Environment (MINAM), Modesto Montoya, stated that Spanish oil company, Repsol, is not fulfilling its obligation to clean-up the aftermath of the oil spill that came from one of its refineries.
The oil spill occurred on January 15, 2022 at one of the La Pampilla refineries off the coast of Ventanilla in the region of Lima, Peru. It was reported that the spill was caused by shock waves from an undersea volcanic eruption near Tonga in the South Pacific Ocean. At the time of the undersea eruption, Suezmax tanker, Mare Doricum, was offloading a shipment of Brazilian crude oil at one of La Pampilla refinery’s offshore mooring buoys, and as such, a quantity of the cargo was released.
Repsol had underreported the quantity of crude that was spilled but later investigations by Peru’s Agency for Environmental Assessment and Enforcement (OEFA) revealed that almost 12,000 barrels of oils was spilled – more than double the amount that was initially reported by the company.
As a result of the devastating oil spill, several Peruvian officials had called for the oil company to compensate for what they described as an ‘ecological disaster’ that has occurred in Lima in recent times.
According to a recent MINAM press release, Minister Montoya shared that a white foam, similar to that of detergents, formed as a result of the Repsol oil spill. The Minister also shared that the foam is killing the wildlife that inhabits the Bay of Ancón and the National Reserve System of Guano Islands, Islets and Points.
He said, “There is white foam that is killing everything on the surface.” The minister further explained that the contaminated substance makes young birds die of hypothermia. These birds, according to Montoya, are now learning to swim and it makes them very vulnerable to die of hypothermia because the foam would cause them to lose the impermeability of their feathers upon entering the water.
Minister Montoya noted too that cleaning of the entire area affected by the crude, is still to be completed. It was along those lines, he indicated, that Repsol is not fulfilling its obligations. To this end, he emphasised, “International and national laws indicate that any accident of this type must be resolved by those responsible.”
The head of the sector also shared that the Peruvian government is currently assisting with the cleaning of affected beaches with the tools it has available. However, the country does not have the technology to clean the foam that is threatening the life of the wild species that inhabit the contaminated areas.
Minister Montoya assured that he will evaluate, together with local and regional authorities, how to recover the Paraíso de Chimbote beach – which for many years, has been contaminated by industrial activities. In this light, he called on companies to assume their responsibilities and to promise to prioritise the recovery of the said beach, which he considers as one of the most beautiful bays in the Pacific. Montoya pointed out too that the bay is the livelihood of the fishermen in the area.
Kaieteur News had reported that following the devastating oil spill, the Peruvian government took its first action to seek a court order via a Specialised Prosecutor for Environmental Matters for Lima, Noroeste, to prevent four Repsol executives from leaving the country. The prosecutor is said to be considering a criminal case against the company’s representatives and had approached the district court to issue an order preventing the executives from leaving the country. This was done to ensure that they will be available for any possible criminal proceedings should the need arise.
Based on the prosecutor’s submission to the court, Judge Romualdo Aguedo on Friday, January 28, 2022 granted the order to prevent the four executives from leaving the country. Peruvian media reported that Judge Aguedo imposed an 18-month ban on the grounds of the potential risk that the officials might leave Peru.
Those that have been barred are refinery manager, Jaime Fernández-Cuesta Luca de Tena; terminal manager, Renzo Alejandro Tejada Mackenzie; environmental manager, Gisela Cecilia Posadas Jhong, and production manager, José Gregorio Reyes Ruiz. It was reported that the lawyers for the Repsol executives did not appeal the decision and said that they will collaborate with the investigation.
In taking additional steps, it was revealed by Peru’s former Minister of the Environment, Rubén Ramirez, on Monday, January 31, 2022, that the government had taken the decision to suspend the company’s hydrocarbon loading and unloading activities. In other words, it meant that Repsol’s operation in the country was halted until it can substantially prove that another oil spill will not occur again in its waters.
However, in an update shared on the Ministry’s Facebook page, a fuel shortage in Peru had forced Peru’s Agency for Environmental Assessment and Enforcement (OEFA), to lift the suspension temporarily of the operations of Repsol. However, the company will only be allowed to continue its operations for 10 days and under supervision from the OEFA.
As the Government of Peru takes action to protect its people and its environment, Guyana in contrast, continues to give American oil giant, ExxonMobil Corporation permission to operate without full-coverage insurance to cater for such a disastrous oil spill. Just recently, ExxonMobil announced that it has commenced oil production at Guyana’s second offshore development area called Liza Phase Two in the Stabroek Block.
Kaieteur News had reported that Guyana’s pocket would bleed tremendously if an oil spill or any other disaster should occur at any of ExxonMobil’s approved projects. This is due to the fact that the country remains without comprehensive insurance coverage from Stabroek Block operators ExxonMobil, Hess and CNOOC/NEXEN.
In fact, what Guyana does have too is an agreement with Exxon’s subsidiary, Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL). But that company has little assets, so little that it would not be able to carry the cost of any major disaster that could occur in the Stabroek Block area, which would leave Guyana to bear the costs.
It is along these lines that Guyana’s Vice President, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, is reported in the media on February 10, 2021, as saying that he believes that Exxon and its partners should be the ones accepting liability for such disasters. The current administration has received no commitment from ExxonMobil in this regard.
Later in the year, the Vice President is reported in the media as saying that his government is working to secure up to US$2B from ExxonMobil to cover any damage that may result from the US$9B Yellowtail Project, the fourth to be developed in the prolific Stabroek Block.
As the pussyfooting for full-coverage insurance continues, Dr. Jagdeo, during a recent conference shifted the responsibility for ensuring that Guyana benefits from full-coverage insurance to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
This publication reported that when asked for an update on the full-coverage discussions with the oil operators, the Vice President shifted the attention from himself and government, by extension on the matter to say it is the EPA that is handling this crucial insurance negotiation with Exxon.

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