Lima – Peru’s Camisea gas pipeline, which has leaked four times since it began pumping to Lima in mid-2004, will probably rupture again because of its poor construction, a US environmental consultancy said on Monday.
San Diego-based E-Tech International, which hired engineers involved in Camisea’s construction for its review, said the 430-mile (720-km) pipeline is likely to leak at six points, several of which are in pristine rain forest in southern Peru where the Camisea field is located. Any leaks would be due to rusty, badly welded pipes, E-Tech said in a report.
“Right now, the pipeline is a failure and there is a high chance of more leaks,” said Richard Kamp, director of E-Tech.
“Four breaks in a year are absolutely unheard of. You won’t find any projects in the world with so many leaks in a year,” he added after E-Tech handed in its report to the Inter-American Development Bank, which helped finance Camisea.
Pipeline operator Transportadora de Gas del Peru (TgP), a consortium led by Argentina’s Techint, rejected the report’s findings, saying they were “inaccurate.”
“The report has a series of errors and we simply do not agree that there is a threat of new spills in the near future,” said Rafael Guarderas, TgP’s head of investor relations.
Indigenous Peruvians and environmental groups say Camisea’s pipeline construction has deforested large areas in one of the world’s most biodiverse rain forests and fear irreversible damage from any large gas spills.
Argentinian oil group Pluspetrol, Hunt Oil of the United States, South Korea’s SK Corp, Algeria’s Sonatrach, Peruvian builder Grana y Montero and French utility Suez are also partners in TgP.
According to the report, at least half of the pipe used in the pipeline construction was left over from other projects and was severely corroded. “The pipe arrived in Peru with tapered pipe ends deformed due to inadequate storage and transportation procedures,” the report added.
The pipeline last leaked in November, spilling 6,000 barrels of fuel into the jungle, according to the government, which has warned TgP it could cancel its operating contract if future leaks occur.
Peru’s energy sector regulator, Osinerg, fined TgP $915,000 for the leaks. TgP has appealed against the fines and aims to invest up to $30 million in its pipeline.
Peru intends to export Camisea gas to Mexico from 2009.
