OREANDA-NEWS. September 19, 2011. More than one hundred employees of OJSC Orenburgneft (a subsidiary of TNK-BP) and subdivisions of the Ministry of Civil Defense, Emergencies and Disaster Relief of the Russian Federation took part in large-scale exercises with elimination of emergency situations with oil spills, extinguishing of controlled fires, emergency response operations, and evacuation and rescue activities. The exercises were held this week by the Health, Safety and Environment Division of TNK-BP. Prior to the exercises, a meeting of the Health, Safety and Environment Division leaders was held with participation of representatives of all TNK-BP subsidiaries fr om all regions wh ere the Company operates to discuss the results of the previous year.

According to the exercise scenario, the emergency was caused by an unauthorized attempt to tap into an oil pipeline. The set of measures implemented during the exercises localized and eliminated the oil spill and fire caused by a loss of containment of the oil pipeline. Orenburgneft workers were able to rehearse emergency measures with the Orenburg Region emergency response and industrial safety commissions and municipal units in the vicinity of industrial facilities at OJSC Orenburgneft.

Igor Karlin, Acting Vice President, Health, Safety and Environment, OJSC TNK-BP Management, pointed out that emergency response actions are described in great detail in corporate documents. He said that the purpose of these exercises was “to practice the coordination of the actions of all services” Anatoly Tyomkin, Executive Vice President, OJSC TNK-BP Management, emphasized that “high level of health, industrial safety, and environmental protection is an indisputable priority of the company.”