The central government has finally weighed in on the Bohai Sea oil-spill controversy, two months after the first spill was detected, in an apparent attempt to turn up the heat on US-based oil company ConocoPhillips amid growing public impatience.
Six ministries and State Council agencies, including the ministries of Agriculture, Energy and Environment, have joined the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) in a probe into the controversy, The Beijing News reported yesterday.
The spills at the country's largest offshore oilfield, Penglai 19-3, have resulted in one of the nation's worst marine contaminations in decades, but the leaks have yet to be brought under control, as the maritime watchdog and the US operator of the rigs are locked in a dispute.
The joint task force, which met on Friday for the first time, has urged ConocoPhillips China to take effective measures to repair leaks, 'eliminate risks of further spills and guarantee that no new harm would be done to the marine environment', the newspaper report said.
The North China Sea branch of the SOA said it had received reports from ConocoPhillips China that at least nine new sources of leaked oil have been found in the areas within 15 metres north of one of the rigs, Xinhua reported.
Analysts said the discovery of new spills had raised further questions about the US company's ability to stop the leakage by the end of this month, as SOA demanded last week.
