BP shuts UK field after oil leak

[dennis tooth]

BP suffered an oil leak in the Dorset countryside late last year, causing such concern that its biggest onshore field in Western Europe has been shut down for the past two months.

 

The oil giant launched a review of all its pipelines at the Wytch Farm site following the incident – less than a year since its Gulf of Mexico oil leak put the company's health and safety record under scrutiny.

 

Wytch Farm has not been producing its 25,000 barrels per day since November and the pipeline where the leak was discovered has been undergoing maintenance ever since. Robots have been sent down into all its pipes at the site to check their condition.

 

BP did not release any public statements at the time of the leak but on Wednesday told The Telegraph that the move to shut down the field was due to "extreme caution" because of the US spill.

 

"Because of what happened last year, anything that looks like there could be a pipeline integrity issue means we are being extra careful," a BP spokesman said. "It was noticed when somebody observed a small amount of oil, from a pipeline encased in concrete and sand, had risen to the surface of the sand.

 

"We've replaced that section of pipe and as a precaution we've been inspecting all the key pipelines down there."

 

Old and damaged pipelines have been the source of several leaks from BP's assets in Alaska, including the serious Prudhoe Bay spill in 2006. The Aleyska pipeline, which is half-owned by BP, sprung a leak last month, shutting down production from the North Slopes and pushing up the price of oil by almost $2 per barrel.

 

The Dorset leak occurred just before warnings from the Health and Safety Executive in December about corrosion.

 

BP is not the only company to see recent corrosion of its UK assets. Royal Dutch Shell launched an inquiry this month after a piece of platform fell into the North Sea. It shut down the Brent Bravo platform immediately, as well as three others as a precautionary measure. Nobody was injured nor was there any danger of a spill.

 

The HSE told companies they had become so focused on preventing major offshore incidents that they are "neglecting general maintenance" of their oil and gas installations. The regulator found only one-in-30 of Britain's North Sea oil platforms was in a good condition when inspected.

 

Asked about the Wytch Farm incident, a spokesman for the safety regulator said: "HSE is aware of the shutdown as such closure of a pipeline for 24 hours or more is reportable."

 

BP is expected to submit a report to the regulator, and the Department of Energy and Climate Change said it was monitoring the situation. The field is now expected to re-open "within days".

 

The oil giant was subject to an investigation in the North Sea, which found new staff were not trained to "basic safety standards" just six months before its Gulf of Mexico accident.

 

 

FAIR's annual report pointed out that as well as subverting potentially damaging news reports, powerful advertisers also like to ensure that they are associated with positive spin. Thus, the October 31, 2005 issue of Time magazine featured a section titled "The Future of Energy". This focused on attempts to find alternatives to oil and to make oil production more efficient. FAIR summarised the piece:

 

"Throughout the feature were full-page ads for BP, with taglines like 'investing in our energy future,' explaining how the company is pursuing alternatives to oil. BP is also mentioned by a source in Time's feature article as one of the more innovative energy companies. That, presumably, was free." (FAIR, op. cit.)

 

Many Media Lens readers will be aware that BP advertising regularly appears in the Independent, with full-page ads in the print edition as well as BP 'Target neutral' ads on frequent rotation in the online edition (as they are on the Guardian's website). Such rotating ads are essentially tools of greenwashing spin, presenting a false image of a huge oil corporation working tirelessly to turn away from fossil fuels towards a greener future based on clean and renewable energy.

 

It is no surprise that BP is spending big money to reach audiences provided by The Independent and The Guardian - relatively influential and affluent readers with (often) left-liberal-green leanings. By launching a pre-emptive strike on people who might be sceptical of fossil fuel giants, BP aims to get them "on side". The implicit message is: "We're like you - we're concerned about the environment and about climate change. We're doing something about it by going green - by going 'beyond petroleum'. We're all part of the same movement".