Monday, May 24, 2010

Iran renews offer to help on US oil spill

Press TV

The National Iranian Drilling Company (NIDC) has renewed its offer to assist the US in reining in an ecologically disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Mehran Alinejad, the head of special drilling operations at NIDC, pointed to the experience gained by Iranian experts in containing huge oil leaks during the eight-year Iraqi-imposed war in the 1980s, and said, "Iranian technical teams have had major achievements in oil well capping and the Gulf of Mexico oil rig is not a great feat in comparison."

"There is, at any rate, an ecological disaster in the Gulf of Mexico and its negative consequences will affect everyone. That is why if we receive a suitable response from relevant [American] officials we can examine the issue and contribute to its resolution," Alinejad was quoted by IRNA as saying.

Since April, when an explosion on a BP-operated oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico killed 11 employees and triggered a major oil spill, Iran has twice offered to help the US avoid the looming ecological catastrophe.

Washington, which has been pressing on with a campaign to impose a fourth round of tough UN sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear program, has yet to respond to the Iranian offer.

Concerns have deepened as the 120-mile (190-km) oil slick continues to approach the shoreline, threatening the region's ecosystem, fishing and tourism.

BP officials say that the ruptured undersea well is spewing some 5,000 barrels of crude oil a day. However, analysts believe that at least 70,000 barrels of oil is spewed every day.

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