Eric Watkins
Senior Correspondent
LOS ANGELES, Sept. 13 -- Royal Dutch Shell PLC has defended standards at its Argentina operations after authorities in the Latin American country closed a company refinery near Buenos Aires on environmental grounds.
A Shell spokesperson said all of the firm's operations were, and are, conducted according to local legislation and strengthened Shell standards.
The spokesperson said Shell Argentina will respond after analyzing the documentation received and the allegations made by the environmental secretariat.
On its web site, Shell said the refinery began operations in May 1931 and that overhauls since then have made it one of the world's "most modern" refineries.
The government said it ordered the closure as a precautionary measure, saying the plant was drawing water from the nearby Plate River estuary without necessary permits, that its procedures for handling residues were deficient, and that it lacked environmental impact studies.
In a statement, authorities also claimed they had conducted inspections for 13 days at the Shell refinery in the Dock Sud area of southern Buenos Aires and that they had found pollution in tests of soil samples.
The environment ministry said the closure would remain in effect until the problems were corrected by Shell.
The closure represents the latest clash between President Nestor Kirchner's government and Shell. Problems began in 2005, when Kirchner called on the Argentine public to boycott Shell's products after a price increase.
This year alone the government has levied some 30 fines against the company for various alleged violations.
In July, Kirchner's government fined Shell for failing to meet domestic fuel demands as required by law, particularly as the country faced a wintertime power shortage.
Contact Eric Watkins at [email protected].
