Esso Petroleum, the operator of the UK’s largest oil refinery, has been fined by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) for breaching health and safety regulations. The £500,000 fine relates to a November 2015 incident at the company’s Fawley refinery in Hampshire where an uncontrolled release of around 15 tonnes of liquid petroleum gas (LPG) occurred through a valve.
An investigation by the HSE found that the leak occurred because LPG was put through the pipe work at too a high a pressure for the valve, there was no process in place to detect the discrepancy in the flow in the pipe and that the company had failed to take all measures necessary to prevent a major incident.
Source: hazardex