Refinery blast: BP chief must answer questions, says court

Outgoing BP chief executive John Browne has been ordered to answer questions about the company’s Texas City plant explosion in 2005 that killed 15 people and injured hundreds more.

Mr Browne was previously ordered to give a deposition, but it was put on hold by the Texas appeals court when lawyers for Eva Rowe, whose parents were killed by the blast, settled with London-based BP in November.

Attorney Brent Coon, who represented Rowe, said his firm still had 150 other lawsuits pending against BP and thatMr Browne’s deposition was important to them.

The company said it was considering its options, including an appeal.

“Lord Browne does not have unique personal knowledge about the incident,” BP spokesman Neil Chapman said.

BP announced last month that Mr Browne would step down by the end of July - more than a year ahead of schedule.

The Texas City explosion happened when part of the plant’s isomerisation unit, which boosts the level of octane in petrol, overfilled with highly flammable liquid hydrocarbons.

There was a geyser-like release of flammable liquid and vapour, which ignited as the unit was starting up. Alarms and gauges that should have warned of the overfilling equipment failed to work at the plant, about 40 miles south east of Houston.

The unit had a history of problems and was not connected to a flare system that burns off vapour and could have prevented or minimised the accident, according to an initial report by the US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, one of several agencies looking into the blast.

The CSB also found that BP fostered bad management at the plant and that internal documents showed budget cuts caused a progressive deterioration of safety at the refinery.