Sable Offshore Corp. seeks permits to restart the same pipeline that caused the 2015 Refugio oil spill

Last week, the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission approved the transfer of permits to Sable Offshore, a new Texas oil company that is trying to restart three offshore drilling platforms, onshore processing facilities and pipelines previously owned by ExxonMobil.

“There is a long history of oil companies telling our community that they are safe and reliable operators. But we’ve learned the hard way, time and time again, that they weren’t, and the consequences have been devastating for our coast, for wildlife, for our economy, and for the health of people who live near toxic oil spills. ”Alex stated. Katz, CEO of EDC. “Sable has already demonstrated that it cannot be trusted to operate responsibly or safely. “We urge county supervisors to deny these transfers and protect our coastline.”

“We remain concerned about the risks of operating these dangerous facilities, which have already caused a catastrophic oil spill, and entrusting them to a speculative company like Sable,” said SBCAN Director Ken Hough. “The approval of the transfers was not only inconsistent with the County’s requirements, but also a serious breach of the Commission’s duty to protect the public and ensure that oil and gas facilities are operated responsibly.”

In 2015, the badly corroded Plains All-American Pipeline ruptured near Refugio State Beach. The spill devastated 150 miles of the California coast, destroyed thousands of acres of coastline and subtidal habitat, killed untold numbers of animals including marine mammals, closed fisheries and beaches, cost hundreds of millions to clean up, and resulted in criminal convictions for the former owner.

The restart would also restore the largest stationary source of greenhouse gas emissions to Santa Barbara County, compromising air quality and directly harming the county’s ability to meet its climate goals. When in operation, the facilities were responsible for more than half of all emissions in the county.

“Given its weak financial stability, it would be a serious mistake to transfer responsibility for these facilities to Sable,” said Michael Lyons, president of GOO! “Time and time again we have seen how taxpayers must foot the bill for decommissioning oil and gas facilities after the operators have gone bankrupt.”

Earlier this year, Sable acquired the Gaviota Coast platforms and facilities known as the Santa Ynez Unit (SYU) from Exxon. Sable must obtain permits from Exxon before it can restart, but the company still needs additional approvals from several state agencies, including CalFIRE and the California Coastal Commission. Sable has told its investors that it plans to restart SYU, including the pipeline responsible for the Refugio spill, before the end of the year.

At its Oct. 30 hearing, the Planning Commission was asked to evaluate Sable’s financial stability, operational capacity, compliance with existing permit conditions and ability to respond to an oil spill.

A coalition of Central Coast environmental groups and community members opposed the transfer. Speakers noted that Sable is a speculative company with no revenue stream and would likely not be able to remedy another spill if it occurred. They also pointed to Sable’s questionable record as an operator – including his recent decision to ignore a direct order from the California Coastal Commission to stop unauthorized repair work on the corroded pipeline – as evidence that he would not be a safe or reliable operator.

Failure to comply with county permits was also an issue: To date, Sable still does not have an approved oil spill contingency plan and its onshore pipelines still lack effective protection against corrosion, the cause of the 2015 spill. .The permits in question require that the pipeline have effective corrosion protection before a transfer can be approved.

During the hearing, several commissioners acknowledged that the County was not independently analyzing Sable’s financial capacity, even though the County is clearly responsible for “ensuring… adequate financial accountability” under its own ordinance.

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