Brazil to sue over Rio oil spill

A law suit has been filed against Chevron and Transocean by federal prosecutors in Brazil following the oil spill off the coast of Rio de Janeiro.

The oil firms are being sued for $10.6 billion (£6.8 billion) in damages, as well as a demand that they shutdown their operations in the country.

It is thought that Brazil may be looking to make an example out of Chevron, as the spill in the Campos basin as relatively small at only around 2,400 barrels and was plugged within days.

According to the Financial Times, the federal prosecutors' office issued a statement which said: "[Chevron] held back information from the National Petroleum Agency (ANP), committed mistakes in their contingency plan and made errors when assessing the size of the disaster."

Brazil had previously put a temporary ban on Chevron's operations within the country following the spill, with the company claiming it is surprised by ANP's response to the spill.

Posted by Joseph Hutton