Ohio Sues BP for $33M Over Tank Leak Cleanup Costs

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BP Plc double dipped by taking a total of more than $33 million from an Ohio compensation fund and insurers to clean up leaks from underground storage tanks, according to the state’s attorney general.

Attorney General Mike DeWine and Ohio’s Petroleum Underground Storage Tank Release Compensation Board sued London-based BP’s North American affiliate in a state court in Columbus, demanding restitution.

“BP has to follow the same rules as other businesses and can’t engage in misconduct without consequence,” DeWine said in a statement announcing the filing.

More than $22 million in reimbursement claims are still pending before the board, according to the state’s complaint.

Also named as a defendant in the lawsuit is the Standard Oil Company and affiliates now part of BP including Standard Oil of Ohio, better known as SOHIO, Amoco Oil and Atlantic Richfield Co., also known as ARCO.

Because of those acquisitions, BP has “a historic presence” in the state, encompassing thousands of owned, operated, leased, branded and supplied service stations and convenience stores with underground storage tanks, or USTs, according to the state.

“Virtually all of the USTs installed at these service stations and convenience stores were steel tanks with steel pipes,” the state alleged. A majority of them leaked.

The compensation board and fund were established in 1989 as a last resort for tank owners that don’t have coverage, the attorney general said. BP, in many instances, concealed that it had insurance while applying to the board for clean-up cost reimbursement.

Scott Dean and Brett Clanton, spokesmen for Houston-based BP America, didn’t immediately reply to voice-mail and e-mail messages seeking comment about the state’s allegations.

The case is Petroleum Underground Storage Tank Release Compensation Board v. Standard Oil Co., 15-cv-01837, Franklin County, Ohio, Court of Common Pleas (Columbus).