BP and Transocean "dropped the ball" on safety ahead of the Gulf of Mexico disaster, failing to focus on the risks of major accidents on the Deepwater Horizon rig, US regulators said.
BP and Transocean "dropped the ball" on safety in the run-up to the Gulf of Mexico disaster, failing to focus on the risks of major accidents on the Deepwater Horizon rig, US regulators said.
The accident in April 2010 killed 11 men and caused the worst offshore oil spill in US history. BP is still tied up in negotiations with US authorities to try to settle claims relating to the disaster.
In a report to be delivered today, the US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) found that BP, which operated the Macondo well, and Transocean, which owned the Deepwater Horizon, lacked clear guidelines for key tests to ensure that the well was safely sealed.
The companies had "multiple safety management system deficiencies that contributed to the Macondo incident", the report said. Neither had safety rules that adequately focused on major accident hazards, it found.
BP focused on large-scale risks only for its own rigs, applying "lesser process safety standards" to rigs it contracted from other firms, such as the Deepwater Horizon, the investigators said.
BP instead focused on smaller details of individual worker safety.It also "focused on financial risks, not process safety risks".
Safety board managing director Daniel Horowitz told the AP news agency: "In reality, both Transocean and BP dropped the ball on major accident hazards in this case."
A BP spokesman said: "Like every official investigation, the CSB's preliminary findings reflect that the Deepwater Horizon accident was the result of multiple causes, involving multiple parties.
"After the accident BP alone stepped up and, as the CSB has recognized, has taken concrete steps to further enhance safety and risk management throughout its global operations. "
A Transocean spokesman said: "Transocean is committed to continuous improvement in both personal and process safety performance. We look forward to reviewing the CSB report in its entirety toward that end, just as we have with the many investigative reports that have preceded it."
telegraph.co.uk
BP and Transocean "dropped the ball" on safety in the run-up to the Gulf of Mexico disaster, failing to focus on the risks of major accidents on the Deepwater Horizon rig, US regulators said.
The accident in April 2010 killed 11 men and caused the worst offshore oil spill in US history. BP is still tied up in negotiations with US authorities to try to settle claims relating to the disaster.
In a report to be delivered today, the US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) found that BP, which operated the Macondo well, and Transocean, which owned the Deepwater Horizon, lacked clear guidelines for key tests to ensure that the well was safely sealed.
The companies had "multiple safety management system deficiencies that contributed to the Macondo incident", the report said. Neither had safety rules that adequately focused on major accident hazards, it found.
BP focused on large-scale risks only for its own rigs, applying "lesser process safety standards" to rigs it contracted from other firms, such as the Deepwater Horizon, the investigators said.
BP instead focused on smaller details of individual worker safety.It also "focused on financial risks, not process safety risks".
Safety board managing director Daniel Horowitz told the AP news agency: "In reality, both Transocean and BP dropped the ball on major accident hazards in this case."
A BP spokesman said: "Like every official investigation, the CSB's preliminary findings reflect that the Deepwater Horizon accident was the result of multiple causes, involving multiple parties.
"After the accident BP alone stepped up and, as the CSB has recognized, has taken concrete steps to further enhance safety and risk management throughout its global operations. "
A Transocean spokesman said: "Transocean is committed to continuous improvement in both personal and process safety performance. We look forward to reviewing the CSB report in its entirety toward that end, just as we have with the many investigative reports that have preceded it."
telegraph.co.uk
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