Repsol presents paperwork to restart operations at Peruvian refinery following spill
Energy firm Repsol SA said that it had presented the paperwork required by the Peruvian government to restart oil unloading operations at its La Pampilla refinery, following a spill of over 10,000 bbl.
New Peruvian Prime Minister Hector Valer said on Thursday the country was facing a fuel shortage due to a government decree that forbids Repsol SA from unloading any new oil into a local refinery.
"We are starting the fuel shortage since yesterday, due to a decree that we need to annul," Valer told reporters.
Valer, who was named prime minister on Tuesday, was not involved in the decision to suspend Repsol's Peruvian operations, which had been put in place on Jan. 31.
Peru had ordered Repsol to suspend unloading oil shipments until it submitted new contingency plans in case of a new spill. Peru has yet to say if it will allow Repsol to restart operations based on the new plan.
Peruvian President Pedro Castillo called the spill the worst ecological disaster in the country's recent memory. Repsol has said it will take until the end of February to finish cleaning up the spill.
La Pampilla is Peru's largest refinery and accounts for about 40% of Peruvian fuel.
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