Petrobras Spilled More Oil in 2010 Than Chevron Did in Brazil This Month

Brazilians newspaper O Globo Sunday reported Brazilian oil company Petrobras spilled more oil in all of 2010 than did Chevron Corp. earlier this month off the coast of Rio de Janeiro.

The Brazilian newspaper said the state-controlled oil company leaked 4,200 barrels of oil, well above the 2,400 barrels leaked by Chevron earlier this month.

Petrobras reported 57 spills and the volume leaked in 2010 was the highest in the past four years, the newspaper reported. The amount leaked by Petrobras this past year is above the maximum permissible limit of 3,895 barrels, according to an annual state index.

The report comes as Petrobras announced this past weekend it had contained a small gas leak at one of its offshore drilling rigs.

Reuters reported the Brazilian oil company spent close to $1 billion on environmental expenses, but the company's spending on pollution control fell almost 13 percent to $91 million in the past year.

Enrico Monte Lima, a spokesperson for Petrobras, told IBTimes the company has no comment.