Chevron Execs Barred from Leaving Brazil

March 19, 2012
Five U.S. nationals, five Brazilians, three Australians, two French nationals, a Canadian and a Briton were being held due to pending new charges over a second oil spill.

A judge barred 17 Chevron executives from around the world from leaving Brazil in an oil spill investigation as prosecutors readied new charges over a second spill involving the company, local media reported on March 17

The Chevron brass -- five U.S. nationals, five Brazilians, three Australians, two French nationals, a Canadian and a Briton -- can only leave Brazil with court approval, Judge Vlamir Costa of Rio de Janeiro state ruled.

In November, Chevron was blamed for a major spill in the Frade Field area off Rio de Janeiro state, with Brazil's National Petroleum Agency (ANP) calculating that some 3,000 barrels of crude were spilled.

Brazilian authorities as a result suspended all of Chevron's drilling operations and denied it access to huge new offshore fields, which ANP says have reserves that could surpass 100 billion barrels of high-quality recoverable oil.

On March 15, Chevron reported a minor spill in the same area that caused it to stop production in Brazil. The company has not said if the two spills are related but authorities suspect the second was caused by the first.

Chevron said it would conduct a comprehensive technical study and prepare a complementary study to better understand the geological features of the area, working with its partners and seeking necessary approvals from ANP.

So far the U.S. firm has been fined 30 million dollars and kept from new exploration operations.

Prosecutors also have announced legal action against Chevron, its Brazilian unit and oil drilling contractor Transocean, seeking $11 billion over the November spill.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2012

See Also
Brazilian Police Accuse Chevron of Environmental Crimes

Popular Sponsored Recommendations

Your Industry 4.0 Journey

Sept. 24, 2023
When It Comes to Industry 4.0, the Journey is the Destination. Industry 4.0 must be embraced as a long-term, strategic mindset of digital transformation that dynamically alters...

Digitally Transforming Data and Processes With Product Lifecycle Management

Oct. 29, 2023
Manufacturers face increasing challenges in product development as they strive to consistently deliver improved results. Discover how industry leaders are improving time-to-market...

Gain a competitive edge with real-world lessons on private 5G networks

Nov. 16, 2023
The use of private networks in manufacturing applications is rapidly growing. In this paper, we present valuable insights and lessons learned from the field with the goal of enhancing...

The Ultimate Ecommerce Excellence Checklist

Oct. 2, 2023
Scaling ecommerce operations is no easy task when your business is moving fast. Assess your current ecommerce maturity level and set optimization priorities with this practical...

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of IndustryWeek, create an account today!