Peru to sue Repsol for $4.5bn over oil spill

Peru's consumer protection agency is suing Spanish oil firm Repsol over a huge oil spill which blackened beaches off the coast of Lima in January.

The spill, which Peru called the worst ecological disaster around Lima in recent memory, leaked more than 10,000 barrels into the Pacific Ocean.

The civil lawsuit seeks $3bn (£2.54bn) for environmental damage and $1.5bn (£1.27bn) for damages to locals.

Repsol has denied responsibility.

On Tuesday, a Peruvian judge admitted the $4.5bn lawsuit by Indecopi against Repsol, meaning the case will go to court.

An underwater oil pipeline owned by the company caused a spill on 15 January. It happened when an Italian-flagged tanker, Mare Doricum, was unloading at Repsol's La Pampilla refinery.

Repsol initially said the spill was caused by "sudden and extraordinary anomalous waves produced by the volcanic eruption in Tonga". However, it later blamed the oil tanker.

The firm has denied responsibility for the spill and told Reuters that the lawsuit is meritless and the sum is arbitrary.

The BBC has contacted Repsol for comment.

Earlier this year, President Pedro Castillo described the spill as "one of the biggest ecocides ever on our coasts and seas".

Hundreds of fishermen and hospitality workers also lost income due to the disaster, according to the Peruvian environment ministry.

Local fisherman staged protests because they were unable to go out to sea and work because of the spill.

Indecopi has alleged that the ecological damage is continuing to affect fishermen and the environment.

"We are looking to get compensation for the affected population... that lives within 150km of contaminated coast," said Julian Palacin, the head of Indecopi, in a statement.

In January, prosecutors also opened a criminal investigation into Repsol's role in the incident. Four executives from the firm were barred from leaving the country for 18 months amid the ongoing probe.

In May, Repsol said the clean-up would cost the firm $150m (£127m).

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