MarketWatch.com: Shell refining unit to pay $10 million: “The fine stems from an incident on July 17, 2001 when 415,000-gallon tank exploded, spewing spent sulfuric acid, which contains flammable hydrocarbons, into the air. One worker was killed and many others were injured. The waste spilled into the Delaware River and killed thousands of fish and crabs.”: “The Justice Department noted that the $10 million criminal environmental fine is the largest in Delaware history.” (ShellNews.net) Posted 18 March 05
By Lisa Sanders, MarketWatch
DALLAS (MarketWatch) - Motiva Enterprises, an oil refining business owned by Shell Oil Co. and Saudi Refining Inc., pleaded guilty Thursday to endangering workers at a former refinery in Delaware and violating the Clear Air Act and was ordered to pay a $10 million fine.
Motiva will also be on three years of probation, the U.S. Justice Department said. Shell Oil is a subsidiary of the Royal Dutch/Shell Group (RD: news, chart, profile) (SC: news, chart, profile).
Motiva refines and markets gasoline to about 9,400 Shell and Texaco-branded gasoline stations. Shell Oil Co. and Motiva account for about 10 percent of the total U.S. refining capacity and lead the market with 13 percent share of U.S. gasoline sales.
The fine stems from an incident on July 17, 2001 when 415,000-gallon tank exploded, spewing spent sulfuric acid, which contains flammable hydrocarbons, into the air. One worker was killed and many others were injured. The waste spilled into the Delaware River and killed thousands of fish and crabs.
The investigation into the explosion revealed that the tank had had a number of problems over the years and that Motiva's own employees warned the company about its potential to combust.
"Motiva's guilty plea is evidence of our commitment to prosecuting violators who damage the environment, and particularly to prosecuting violators who put their workers in harm's way at the same time," said Acting Assistant Administrator Thomas Skinner, in a statement.
The Justice Department noted that the $10 million criminal environmental fine is the largest in Delaware history.
Click here for ShellNews.net HOME PAGE