RIO DE JANEIRO - U.S. oil giant Chevron (IW 500/3) has agreed to pay 310 million reais ($155 million) to Brazil for an oil spill last year in the Atlantic in deep waters off Rio de Janeiro, officials said Saturday.
Government news service Agencia Brasil said 90 million reais would be used exclusively for environmental cleanup and 220 million reais would serve for measures to prevent future spills.
Federal prosecutor Gisele Porto said that the fine should send a message to all oil producers that "it is better to invest in preventive measures than to pay a fine for polluting."
An official from Chevron Brazil, Rafael Jaen Williamson, said the company admitted guilt for the disaster and made the payment to show that it was prepared to make amends.
"We are prepared to invest our resources in social development projects and environmental, preventative and compensatory measures," he said.
In a statement, Chevron noted that: "Oil did not reach the shore, marine life was not impacted, the local economy was not affected, there were no fatalities and no-one was injured as consequence of the incidents."
The November 2011 spill saw some 3,000 barrels of crude soil the waters of the Atlantic near the Frade oil field, located some 230 miles northwest of Rio.
As a precaution, Chevron voluntarily interrupted its Brazilian activities in March, after detecting another leak three kilometers from the first.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2012
