BP still using Nalco's Corexit on Gulf oil spill
Naperville-based Nalco Holding Co. said Friday that an older and a newer version of its dispersant being used in the Gulf of Mexico oil spill recovery are both safe for the environment and for workers, despite a government order that BP seek less toxic alternatives.
Nalco said it would continue to provide the chemcial and London-based BP, with operations in Naperville, said it would continue to use it.
BP on Friday sent a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, responding to its May 19 directive on dispersants, said local BP spokesman Scott Dean.
"The letter outlines our findings that none of the alternative products on the EPA's National Contingency Plan Product Schedule list meets all three criteria specified in (Thursday's) directive for availability, toxicity and effectiveness," said Dean.
Nalco's Corexit brand of dispersant is an EPA preapproved, effective, low-toxicity dispersant that is readily available "and we continue to use it," Dean said.
Two versions of Corexit were provided in the Gulf emergency. The newest version is called 9500, which has a different mix of chemicals than the previous version, called 9527. Each has a very long shelf life, said Nalco spokesman Charlie Pajor.
"They are safe and effective," said Pajor. "Corexit 9527 is still stocked by various responders in various locations around the world. When the spill occurred, the Gulf response team brought in Corexit dispersants from the various stockpiles, some included 9527, some included 9500."
Whether the government agencies involved in the clean up have reservations about one version over the other isn't clear. But the overall effort was still a responsible thing to do, said Richard Eastman, an analyst with Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc. in Milwaukee.
"BP is in crisis mode and has a comfort level with Nalco and with Corexit," said Eastman. "So Nalco had to scrambled to deliver huge quantizes of that product that BP has asked for. They've never had to deal with that kind of volume before."
Eastman estimates that Nalco has so far sold about $40 million worth of Corexit to BP for the recovery mission. Government agencies, that are part of the Deepwater Horizon Unified Command, estimate about 670,000 gallons of the product have been used there since late April.
Nalco, a global company that provides water processing solutions, first had access to Corexit in the 1990s, when it had a joint venture with its energy solutions business with Exxon Mobil. By 2001, the joint venture was dissolved and Nalco continued with Corexit, Pajor said.
The product is often shipped in bulk by tank trucks or by planes. It is then sprayed at the oil spill site from airplanes or boats. The product then acts like a dish soap to separate the oil from the water. It then forms small bits that sink down into the water and are eaten by microorganisms.
While Corexit has been used by various companies worldwide, nothing compares to its current usage for perhaps Nalco's biggest project to date. It had to ramp up production at its facilities in Texas and Louisiana, Pajor said.
"This has been most unusual," Pajor said about the demand.