BP workers, in the background, remove insulation from an oil transit pipeline at the Prudhoe Bay oil field on Alaska's North Slope Aug. 18, 2006 as other workers use ultrasound to test for weakness in the pipe due to corrosion. BP PLC on Thursday, Nov. 4, 2010, said internal "F" ratings of pipeline sections it operates in Alaska's North Slope are signs the company's corrosion monitoring program is working and not an indicator of failure. BP spokesman Steve Rinehart was responding to a report by
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) -- BP PLC has closed a small portion of the Prudhoe Bay oil field following a judge's ruling that federal regulators didn't get approval from the land owners.
Friday's shutdown of the Raven unit affects less than 1 percent of production from the nation's largest oil field, but it represents a victory for the Inupiat Eskimo family that has battled BP and the Bureau of Indian Affairs over use of the land.
In November, federal claims court Judge Nancy Firestone said the Oenga family is owed millions in unpaid rent because the BIA improperly allowed BP to tap three offshore oil deposits from the family's allotment.
In her 168-page ruling, Firestone said the BIA approved BP's expanded use of the allotment without the family's consent and violated the family's contract with the oil company, the Anchorage Daily News reported.
The federal agency told BP a week ago to shut down production from the Raven unit, which produced about 25,000 barrels of oil in November. The unit is the only one of three disputed offshore deposits that BP was still accessing from the allotment, the newspaper reported. BP is still tapping the Niakuk field.
BP Alaska spokesman Steve Rinehart told the Daily News on Tuesday that the company is evaluating a potential appeal. He noted that the closed unit represented only a fraction of Prudhoe's output.
Oenga family member Tony Delia said last week that the family is willing to renegotiate the lease.
Friday's shutdown of the Raven unit affects less than 1 percent of production from the nation's largest oil field, but it represents a victory for the Inupiat Eskimo family that has battled BP and the Bureau of Indian Affairs over use of the land.
In November, federal claims court Judge Nancy Firestone said the Oenga family is owed millions in unpaid rent because the BIA improperly allowed BP to tap three offshore oil deposits from the family's allotment.
In her 168-page ruling, Firestone said the BIA approved BP's expanded use of the allotment without the family's consent and violated the family's contract with the oil company, the Anchorage Daily News reported.
The federal agency told BP a week ago to shut down production from the Raven unit, which produced about 25,000 barrels of oil in November. The unit is the only one of three disputed offshore deposits that BP was still accessing from the allotment, the newspaper reported. BP is still tapping the Niakuk field.
BP Alaska spokesman Steve Rinehart told the Daily News on Tuesday that the company is evaluating a potential appeal. He noted that the closed unit represented only a fraction of Prudhoe's output.
Oenga family member Tony Delia said last week that the family is willing to renegotiate the lease.
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