BP Report Won't Name Spill Figures; TNK-BP Announces Efficiency Projects

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BP, in its first corporate sustainability report since the Deepwater Horizon disaster, has refused to put a figure on the amount of oil leaked or CO2 emitted in the spill.

Page one of the report lists figures for volume of oil spilled, CO2 emitted and methane released in 2010 (see chart), but these figures don’t include the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the company noted.

As a result, the figures show BP spilling less oil in 2010 than in 2008, Fast Company reported.

BP said that it left these numbers out because of a lack of definitive figures. "Although there are several third-party estimates of the flow rate or total volume of oil spilled from the Deepwater Horizon incident, we believe that no accurate determination can be made or reported until further information is collected and the analysis, such as the condition of the blowout preventer, is completed,” the report said.

“We have not included any emissions from the Deepwater Horizon incident and the response effort due to our reluctance to report data that has such a high degree of uncertainty,” it added.

A government analysis published in August 2010 estimated the volume of oil spilled at 4.9 million barrels.

Much of BP's report focused on the company's response to the spill, both over the short and long term. It devotes one chapter to safety, one to clean-up, wildlife rehabilitation and economic development efforts, another to operational changes including changes to risk management and environmental management, and another to climate change and the need for renewable energy.

“This report should… start with a clear acknowledgement – 2010 was a year that called BP’s sustainability into question… Our task now is to earn back the trust that was lost and build a sustainable BP for the future,” group chief executive Bob Dudley wrote in his letter of introduction.

The report said that BP’s processes and systems for identifying and managing the environmental impacts and risks of certain types of projects, including major projects, are now integrated into its overall operating management system (OMS). The company is carrying out group-wide training to help personnel apply the supporting principles of this system, BP said.

The company said that it is positioned for full compliance with the Environmental Protection Agency’s mandatory reporting rule for greenhouse gases.

BP was among the leading oil and gas companies that contributed to updated guidance, published last month, on improving transparency in environmental reporting.

In related news, TNK-BP, one of Russia’s largest oil producers, has announced a wide-ranging energy efficiency program that it says will lead to energy savings of 15 to 20 percent over the long term. The program will have an “economic effect” of $321 million, TNK-BP said.

The company says it will achieve the energy savings through introducing new technologies, upgrading infrastructure and optimizing existing processes, particularly in exploration and production.

TNK-BP was formed in 2003 from the merger of BP’s Russian oil and gas assets and the oil and gas assets of Alfa, Access/Renova group (AAR). BP and AAR each own 50 percent of TNK-BP.

In 2011 the company plans to spend $9 million on energy-saving equipment for the mechanized production of oil, and $2.8 million on the modernization of high-pressure pumps. TNK-BP also plans to invest $37 million on projects to control water inflow at its operating well stock.

Of this, $26 million will be spent on pilot projects, and $11 million on projects whose efficacy has already been demonstrated.

"The use of new energy-saving technologies and equipment, modern engineering solutions and new approaches to the process will allow TNK-BP to significantly reduce costs for energy, which are one of the most important articles of our costs,” executive vice-president of gas and energy Mikhail Slobodin said. “In the long run, this will help the company reach the level of energy savings of 15 to 20 percent.”

Environment + Energy Leader