2011年6月26日星期日

BP: Don't give Gulf fail-safe device to Transocean (AP)

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在 ServiceModel 客户端配置部分中,找不到引用协定“TranslatorService.LanguageService”的默认终结点元素。这可能是因为未找到应用程序的配置文件,或者是因为客户端元素中找不到与此协定匹配的终结点元素。
By HARRY R. WEBER, Associated Press Harry R. Weber, Associated Press – Fri?Jun?24, 10:19?am?ET

ATLANTA – BP and Transocean are at odds over who should get possession of a key piece of evidence in the Gulf of Mexico oil spill investigation once additional testing is complete.

Transocean, responsible for maintaining the blowout preventer that failed to stop last year's oil spill, argues it is best equipped to preserve the 300-ton device and it wants it back.

But BP told a federal magistrate judge in a letter filed by the court Friday that the blowout preventer shouldn't be given to one of the defendants in numerous lawsuits filed over the disaster. It said the government should safeguard it at least until the end of a trial set for February related to the lawsuits.

The government has said the blowout preventer failed because of a design flaw and a bent piece of pipe. BP, unsatisfied with the analysis, got court approval for additional testing. The government has said it doesn't expect its conclusions to change, though BP and other companies could use the results of the additional testing to defend themselves in the lawsuits.

The additional testing is wrapping up at a NASA facility in New Orleans, and the court has asked the parties to weigh in on what should be done with the device.

"Transocean has the necessary expertise to transport the BOP to a location of its choosing and is willing to assume the costs associated with the related transportation," Transocean said in a letter to the court.

BP argues the blowout preventer should remain in independent hands to ensure its integrity because it is "one of the most central pieces of physical evidence in this litigation."

A lawyer for the Justice Department told the court that the government wants to retain the control pods and certain other parts of the blowout preventer, but it doesn't object to the rest of the device being returned to Transocean. However, it noted that another government agency, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, may want to do additional testing if its own.

A ruling was pending.

Eleven workers were killed when the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded off Louisiana on April 20, 2010. Some 206 million gallons of oil spewed from a well a mile beneath the sea before it was capped three months later, according to government estimates. BP owned the well and was leasing the rig from Transocean.

___

Follow Harry R. Weber at http://www.facebook.com/HarryRWeberAP


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Transocean: BP decisions led to Gulf disaster (AP)

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在 ServiceModel 客户端配置部分中,找不到引用协定“TranslatorService.LanguageService”的默认终结点元素。这可能是因为未找到应用程序的配置文件,或者是因为客户端元素中找不到与此协定匹配的终结点元素。
By HARRY R. WEBER, Associated Press Harry R. Weber, Associated Press – Wed?Jun?22, 2:25?pm?ET

ATLANTA – The owner of the rig that exploded in the Gulf of Mexico last year largely blames oil giant BP for the disaster in an internal investigation report released Wednesday that bolsters the Swiss firm's arguments in the face of lawsuits and expected government fines.

The report from Transocean Ltd. said the April 20, 2010, Deepwater Horizon explosion and resulting oil spill was sparked by a succession of well design, construction, and temporary abandonment decisions that compromised the integrity of the well and compounded the risk of its failure. Transocean said many of the decisions were made by well owner BP in the two weeks before the incident.

The 854-page report doesn't say Transocean holds no blame for what caused the disaster, but it comes pretty close. In one of the few references to something Transocean workers didn't do correctly, the company report noted that none of the people monitoring the well, including the Transocean drill crew, initially detected the flow of oil through the well. However, the report said that once the crew did realize the well was flowing, it "undertook well-control activities that were consistent with its training." Transocean said the explosion was inevitable at that point.

Transocean said its evidence indicates that BP failed to properly assess, manage and communicate risk. On one key aspect — the failure of the blowout preventer to keep oil from leaking into the sea — Transocean seemed to suggest it takes no blame.

BP's own internal report on the disaster blamed a cascade of failures by multiple companies. Government investigations also have spread around the blame.

The findings by all sides will be argued about for months and perhaps years to come as numerous lawsuits make their way through court. The companies involved in the disaster have sued each other seeking to recoup losses or expected losses from the disaster. Fines ultimately imposed by the government could be in the billions of dollars, and the companies involved have been trying to shield themselves as much as possible.

The Transocean report said the findings don't represent the company's legal position, but they are consistent with many of the arguments the firm has been making for more than a year, and they are likely to be cited by Transocean in future proceedings.

In a statement, BP described the Transocean report as an "advocacy piece" that fails to acknowledge the significance of Transocean's role in the disaster. BP said Transocean "has cherry-picked the facts in support of its litigation strategy."

"Unlike BP, which has stepped up to its responsibilities and cooperated with all official investigations regarding the accident, Transocean continues to take every opportunity to avoid its responsibilities," BP said.

The U.S. Coast Guard has previously concluded that flaws in Transocean's emergency training and equipment and a poor safety culture contributed to the disaster.

A key member of Congress and some Gulf residents reacted to the Transocean report with skepticism.

"I would look at it with a sense of suspicion, just from the simple fact that, obviously, there's a monetary gain or loss depending upon what they show their findings to be," said Chris Roberts, a Jefferson Parish, La., Council member whose jurisdiction includes the resort island community of Grand Isle.

As he headed to a demonstration at the Louisiana state capitol by a coalition of fishermen over the oil spill wrecking their livelihoods, Byron Encalade, president of Louisiana Oystermen's Association, said he thinks "there is a degree of responsibility on all parties."

In Washington, Rep. Edward Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat and ranking member of the House Committee on Natural Resources, called the Transocean report "the newest salvo in the continuing circular finger-pointing contest" by the companies involved.

In addition to owning the well that blew out, London-based BP was leasing the rig from Transocean. Eleven rig workers were killed and the government estimates some 206 million gallons of oil spewed from BP's Macondo well a mile beneath the sea before the well was capped three months later. It was the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history, staining hundreds of miles of shoreline, hurting fishermen and businesses and prompting new rules for deepwater drilling. BP has already spent or committed tens of billions of dollars to clean up the mess and compensate victims.

The Transocean report was the culmination of work by an internal investigation team comprised of experts from various technical fields and other specialists. Transocean said the loss of evidence with the rig and the unavailability of certain witnesses limited its investigation and analysis in some areas.

Among Transocean's findings:

? BP did not properly communicate to the drill crew the lack of testing on the cement or the uncertainty surrounding critical tests and procedures used to confirm the integrity of the barriers intended to inhibit the flow of hydrocarbons from the well. A hydrocarbon is a compound consisting of hydrogen and carbon that is found in oil and gas.

? BP adopted a technically complex nitrogen foam cement program for sealing the well. The resulting cementing job was of minimal quantity, left little margin for error, and was not tested adequately before or after the cementing operation. Further, the integrity of the cement may have been compromised by contamination, instability, and an inadequate number of devices used to center the casing in the wellbore.

_Cement contractor Halliburton and BP did not adequately test the cement slurry used to seal the well.

_BP also failed to assess the risk of the temporary abandonment procedure used at Macondo. At the time of the explosion, BP was making sure the well was sealed so it could temporarily abandon the site and perhaps come back at some point in the future to produce oil from the exploratory well. Transocean said BP generated at least five different temporary abandonment plans for the Macondo well between April 12, 2010, and April 20, 2010. After this series of last-minute alterations, BP proceeded with a temporary abandonment plan that created risk and did not have the required government approval.

As for the 300-ton blowout preventer that failed to stop the oil from leaking, Transocean said its investigation determined that the device and its control system were fully operational at the time of the incident and functioned as designed. Its report said minor leaks identified before the incident did not adversely affect the functionality. Transocean blamed the high flow rate of hydrocarbons from the well for preventing the device from sealing on the drill pipe. Transocean, as owner of the rig, was responsible for maintaining the blowout preventer.

The official U.S. government investigation previously blamed the failure of the Cameron-made blowout preventer on a design flaw and a bent piece of pipe. It also suggested that actions taken by the Transocean rig crew during its attempts to control the well around the time of the disaster may have contributed to the piece of drill pipe getting trapped.

At least one outside expert said at the time that the government findings cast serious doubt on the reliability of all the other blowout preventers used by the drilling industry.

BP wasn't satisfied that the official investigation conducted all of the necessary tests to determine the cause of the blowout preventer failure. It got court approval for additional testing, which has been conducted in recent weeks.

___

Associated Press writers Mary Foster and Kevin McGill in New Orleans contributed to this report. Follow Harry R. Weber at _http://www.facebook.com/HarryRWeberAP


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Mexico sends camera into unexplored Maya tomb (AP)

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在 ServiceModel 客户端配置部分中,找不到引用协定“TranslatorService.LanguageService”的默认终结点元素。这可能是因为未找到应用程序的配置文件,或者是因为客户端元素中找不到与此协定匹配的终结点元素。

MEXICO CITY – Researchers have lowered a small camera into a previously unexplored early Mayan tomb at the Palenque archaeological site in southern Mexico, revealing an intact funeral chamber, apparent offerings and red-painted wall murals.

Footage of the approximately 1,500-year-old tomb taken by the small, remote-controlled camera show a series of nine figures depicted in black on a vivid, blood-red background. Vases and jade ornaments can be seen on the floor of the small chamber.

The National Institute of Anthropology and History said Thursday archaeologists have known a tomb existed at the site since 1999, but they had been unable to enter it because the pyramid standing above it is unstable and entering the chamber could have damaged the murals.

(This version CORRECTS that tomb previously unexplored, not previously unseen)


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Mexican president apologizes to drug war victims (Reuters)

在 ServiceModel 客户端配置部分中,找不到引用协定“TranslatorService.LanguageService”的默认终结点元素。这可能是因为未找到应用程序的配置文件,或者是因为客户端元素中找不到与此协定匹配的终结点元素。
在 ServiceModel 客户端配置部分中,找不到引用协定“TranslatorService.LanguageService”的默认终结点元素。这可能是因为未找到应用程序的配置文件,或者是因为客户端元素中找不到与此协定匹配的终结点元素。
By Dave Graham and Miguel Angel Gutierrez Dave Graham And Miguel Angel Gutierrez – Thu?Jun?23, 9:31?pm?ET

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – President Felipe Calderon apologized to victims of Mexico's war on drugs in an emotional meeting with bereaved families on Thursday that sought to try and quell rising anger over violence sweeping the nation.

In a live television broadcast lasting several hours, Calderon sat in silence listening to accusations from grieving parents that his government was killing Mexico's youth and allowing criminals to run rampant across the country.

Some 40,000 lives have been lost since his army-led crackdown on drug cartels began at the end of 2006, and Calderon said he regretted the loss of life the violence had caused.

"As a father, as a Mexican and as president, I am deeply aggrieved by Mexico's pain," he said in a hall inside Chapultepec Castle in central Mexico City. "We must ask forgiveness for the people who died at the hands of these criminals, for not having acted against these criminals."

The drug war has hit support for Calderon's ruling National Action Party and polls suggest the center-right grouping will be ousted in a presidential election due in July, 2012.

Thousands of people have joined peace marches organized by poet Javier Sicilia, whose son was killed by gunmen in March and who urged Calderon at the meeting to renounce his strategy.

But the president refused to apologize for taking on the heavily-armed cartels with the armed forces.

"If there's anything I regret, it's not having sent them sooner," he said as the interior minister, attorney general, public security minister and other top officials looked on.

However, he conceded that the war was no longer only about drug cartels in Latin America's second biggest economy.

"It all started with drug trafficking, but the problem for me isn't about drug trafficking, it's about organized crime and violence," Calderon said in an often impassioned address.

Members of the bereaved families were not won over, and one by one they took turns to attack Calderon for failing to address rampant corruption and impunity afflicting Mexico.

RAVAGES OF WAR

By the time Interior Minister Francisco Blake invited Maria Elena Herrera to speak, the middle-aged woman could barely contain herself as she told Calderon and his aides how the state had done nothing to find her four missing sons.

"I'm here representing the pain of all the Mexican mothers and all the people without support who suffer the ravages of this war. My sons are honest workers who were victims of this war," she said with tears streaming down her face.

Alongside the thousands killed in the drug war, many more are missing after being kidnapped by the gangs.

"There are thousands of cases like this. Mr. Calderon, this all demonstrates the government cannot safeguard justice. The only option the government leaves our sons is to condemn them to die because of this war," Herrera said, her voice breaking.

Calderon rose to console Herrera after she spoke, putting an arm around her as she continued to cry.

Though unusual, the event was not the first time Calderon has met with victims of crime and drug war violence.

The 2008 kidnapping and murder of Fernando Marti, 14, son of a well-known businessman, sparked an outcry that prompted Calderon to hold a national, televised meeting with ministers and state governors in which he pledged to stop the violence.

Calderon staged a similar event last year in Ciudad Juarez, the city that has suffered the most violence in the drug war.

Javier Oliva, a security expert at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), said it was risky for Calderon to have taken the step and it showed him in a favorable light.

"But if there's no change in strategy, it's going to be a major problem for the Mexican state, not the government. The social, institutional and media damage that they're exposing the armed forces to is very serious," he said. "They are one of the few institutions which most Mexicans still respect."

(Additional reporting by Robin Emmott; Editing by Paul Simao)


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US, Mexico win to set up CONCACAF Gold Cup final (AFP)

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在 ServiceModel 客户端配置部分中,找不到引用协定“TranslatorService.LanguageService”的默认终结点元素。这可能是因为未找到应用程序的配置文件,或者是因为客户端元素中找不到与此协定匹配的终结点元素。

HOUSTON, Texas (AFP) – The United States reached their fourth consecutive CONCACAF Gold Cup final thanks to a Clint Dempsey goal which secured a 1-0 win for the hosts over Panama.

Dempsey struck in the 77th minute following a pass from Landon Donovan to avenge the Americans' 2-1 loss to Panama in the group stages earlier in the tournament.

"It wasn't our best game but at the end of the day we kept going and got the goal needed to win the game," Dempsey said. "All I had to do was put my foot on it."

The Americans will play Mexico in Saturday's championship match at the Rose Bowl in Los Angeles. The Mexicans defeated Honduras 2-0 in the other semi-final on Wednesday.

Freddy Adu helped set up the winning goal with a long pass to Donovan at the Reliant Stadium.

Donovan, playing his 27th straight Gold Cup match, then played an inch-perfect pass across the Panama goal to Dempsey, who applied the finishing touch.

"We know that when we apply our game we are a pretty hard team to beat," said 22-year-old Adu.

"I think we showed our quality in being able to grind out a result," said Dempsey.

Panama's loss was their fourth consecutive defeat to the Americans in the knockout stages.

Panama coach Julio Dely Valdes said the Americans had more energy Wednesday.

"It was a very intense game, very few chances for both teams," Dely Valdes said. "I'm pleased with my team's performance, they fought until the very end."

Panama were without forward Blas Perez, sent off in his team's quarter-final victory over El Salvador.

The US were missing forward Jozy Altidore with a strained hamstring.

Altidore had scored two of the Americans' six goals in the tournament.

He was injured in the ninth minute of the 2-0 victory against Jamaica at the weekend.

Dely Valdes said there was more parity in the tournament this year.

"The gap between the great teams and the up-and-comers has shrunk significantly," he said. "Panama showed a very competitive level."


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Canada, Australia back Carstens to lead IMF (Reuters)

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OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canada and Australia are backing Mexico's Augustin Carstens to head the International Monetary Fund, they said in a joint statement on Friday in an apparent bid to end Europe's traditional lock on the position.

Carstens, currently central bank governor in Mexico, is competing for the job with French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde.

"Augustin Carstens' previous experience in the IMF, combined with his background as finance minister of Mexico and his current position as governor of the Mexican central bank, equip him very well to understand and address, on a collaborative and inclusive basis with IMF member countries, the challenges faced by the global economy," said a statement by Canada and Australia, released by Ottawa.

"Accordingly, after due consideration of the candidates and the IMF selection criteria, we have decided to support him for the position of IMF managing director."

The two governments said both Carstens and Lagarde were "highly credible" candidates.

(Reporting by Louise Egan; editing by Rob Wilson)


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Mexico's most powerful drug cartels (The Christian Science Monitor)

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在 ServiceModel 客户端配置部分中,找不到引用协定“TranslatorService.LanguageService”的默认终结点元素。这可能是因为未找到应用程序的配置文件,或者是因为客户端元素中找不到与此协定匹配的终结点元素。

- As one quasi-religious drug cartel falls apart, another rises to try to take its?… Full Story Time.com


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