The Peruvian government announced on Friday an agreement with the Spanish oil company Repsol to compensate the thousands of people affected by the consequences of the oil spill that occurred in mid-January in a refinery 30 km north of Lima.
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“The government obtained from Repsol the signing of an economic compensation agreement in favor of those affected by the oil spill in the Ventanilla Sea”, during the unloading of a tanker in the La Pampilla refinery owned by Repsol, indicated on Twitter Anibal Torres, Chief of Staff to President Pedro Castillo.
“The company undertakes to pay up to 3,000 soles (approximately 731 euros) per person as an advance,” he added, pending the determination of the individual compensation amounts.
The Peruvian government has estimated that at least 5,000 fishermen and traders were directly affected by the accidental spill on January 15 of the equivalent of 12,000 barrels of crude oil.
Fauna strongly affected
The oil slick was pushed by the currents up to 140 km north of the refinery. It has led to the death of thousands of fish and seabirds and put hundreds of artisanal fishermen out of work. In the middle of the austral summer, the area’s tourist sector was also hit hard.
Repsol, in a statement, reiterated its “commitment to remedying the damage that the oil spill has caused to communities in the affected area”, stressing that it has already released aid of approximately 3.3 million soles (800′ 000 euros).
The oil company recalled that the accident was due to the “uncontrolled movement” of the oil tanker Mare Doricum due to the strong swells caused by the powerful volcanic eruption in the Tonga islands which caused a tsunami in the Pacific.
She presented a claim for compensation to the Italian company Fratelli d’Amico Armadori, owner of the tanker. Repsol assured on February 18 that it had collected 98% of the oil spilled, although this volume differs from the figures estimated by the Peruvian authorities.
The Ministry of the Environment estimates that at least 1,400 hectares of land and sea have been affected, including 500 hectares of protected marine fauna reserve.
ATS