Explosion Kills At Least 3 at Petrobras Oil Platform

At least three oil workers were killed and 10 were injured in an explosion on Wednesday at an offshore oil and natural gas platform in Brazil operated by state-run energy company Petroleo Brasileiro SA .

A gas leak appeared to be cause of the accident aboard the Cidade de São Mateus, a floating oil production, storage and offloading ship (FPSO), said Davidson Lomba, finance director of Sindepetro-ES, the union representing workers on the platform. The ensuing fire was quickly contained and the platform has been stabilized, Brazil's oil regulator ANP said in a statement.

No oil was leaked into ocean, ANP added.

The FPSO, owned by Norway-listed ship leaser BW Offshore Ltd., also processes natural gas that is sent to shore by undersea pipeline. The platform produces about 2.25 million cubic meters (88.3 million cubic feet) a day of natural gas and 350 cubic meters (2,200 barrels) a day of oil, according to ANP.

Security concerns had already been mounting before the accident at Petrobras, as Brazil's national oil company is known. Huge investments, money-losing fuel subsidies on imports and the largest debt of any oil company in the world have crimped cash and forced Petrobras to operate many facilities at full capacity for long periods without maintenance.

The company has also been dogged by a massive corruption scandal that has led to the arrest of three former Petrobras officials as well as the resignation of its CEO and five other top executives. Dozens of executives from major Petrobras contractors have also been arrested, leading to the cancellation of construction and repair contracts.

Such strains on operations have come as the company suffers from a series of serious accidents and forced maintenance orders at refineries and offshore oil platforms. Union officials also allege that the company's increasing reliance on non-union contract workers has put installations and people at risk.

"It's our position that Petrobras is using too many contract workers who are not always qualified to operate equipment safely," Lomba said.

Petrobras said in a statement that 74 workers were on board at the time of the accident. Six of them remain missing, the company said. Officials at BW Offshore were not immediately available for comment.

The platform operates in the Camarupim field 75 kilometers (47 miles) northeast of Vitoria, the capital of Espirito Santo state.

Lomba said it was still unclear if the dead and injured workers were members of his union, third-party Brazilian workers or foreign employees of BW Offshore.

The Cidade de São Mateus began operating in the field in 2009 and is under contract until 2018 with an option of an extension until 2024.

By Jeb Blount and Marta Nogueira (C) Reuters 2015.