Transocean, owner of the Deepwater Horizon oil platform, has continually stonewalled federal attempts to learn all the details leading up to the worst oil spill in U.S. history. The Department of Justice has filed suit in federal court demanding Transocean turn over 12 years of records pertaining to safety audits of the oil rig that exploded and sunk in April. The litigation comes after the company refused three times to comply with federal subpoenas issued in August, September and October seeking safety reviews from the years 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008 and 2010.

 

Last summer, nine witnesses cancelled or postponed their appearances before an inquiry panel run by the U.S. Coast Guard and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement. Among those avoiding testifying were four Transocean supervisors who oversaw the equipment on the oil well that was supposed to keep a blowout from occurring.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

 

Blown Off 3 Times, Feds Subpoena Transocean for Safety Records (by Sabrina Canfield, Courthouse News Service)

United States v. Transocean (U.S. District Court, Eastern Louisiana) (pdf)

More No-Show Witnesses in Oil Rig Explosion Probe (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)