Authorities stop 20-ton oil spill in Thailand

Bangkok, Jan 26 (EFE).- A 20-ton oil leak from a marine buoy used to store crude in Thailand’s southeast was stopped Wednesday according to Star Petroleum Refining, the company responsible for the device, owned by American company Chevron.

In a statement, Star Petroleum Refining said it discovered the spill 20 kilometers off the coast of Rayong province Tuesday night and that it was working to clean up the crude in the sea.

The Thai Navy, the Marine Resources Department and other government agencies are also involved in the cleanup.

Residents expressed their concern on social networks that the spill could reach the coasts in places such as the tourist island of Samed and the Mae Ram Phueng beach in the Khao Laemya national park, although authorities said this would not happen

According to the Thai Stock Exchange website, Star Petroleum Refining is more than 60 percent owned by Chevron, while other investors include Thai NVDR (6.28 percent), RBC Investor Services Trust (1.82 percent) and Nortrust Nominees (1.73 percent), among others.

In 2013, the island of Samed, which belongs to the province of Rayong, was affected by a spill of about 50 tons of oil, equivalent to more than 50,000 liters, caused by a pipeline of state company PTT. EFE

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