Shell Oil Tanker Explosion Tragedy in Pakistan

On 25th June 2017, an oil tanker carrying 50,000 liter fuel overturned on the national highway near Safeerwala, 6km away from Ahmedpur Sharqia (East), Bahawalpur District, Punjab because of the sharp turn attempt of the driver causing tire burst due to which vehicle went out of control. The fuel spilled and made a shallow pool in the adjacent ground. Hundreds of men and children from nearby village, Ramzanpur Joya and many passing by cars and motorcycles rushed towards the scene of the accident. Suddenly a huge fire broke out and although cause of the tragic accident has not yet been established with certainty but it is believed that someone threw a burning cigarette butt near the tanker after taking the last puff which immediately ignited a huge and uncontrollable fireball, converting into even a fiercer blaze in no time when the fuel tank exploded. Surviving eyewitnesses also say that the incident happened because of a spark in a vehicle which rushed towards the scene along with other vehicles. This tragedy happened at around 0645 pm, forty five minutes after the truck overturned.

148 people were burnt alive on the spot while dozens critically injured, totaling the death toll to 219 in subsequent days whereas 34 critically injured patients are being treated in nearby hospitals. Some sources have claimed that total number of deaths exceeded 400. Most of them were burnt to bones and were not recognizable. 120 of such dead victims were buried in a mass grave. Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif announced PKR two million for the families of deceased and PKR one million for the injured.

The oil tanker belonged to Marwat Enterprises – third party contractor providing exclusive services to Shell Pakistan Limited (SPL) which is a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell. This oil tanker was going from Karachi to Lahore and the accident happened 400 Km away from Lahore. Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) was quick in responding to the incidence and after two weeks of the incidence when they finished the inquiry through third parties, they imposed an accumulative penalty of PKR 10 million on SPL and approximately PKR 250 million in compensation to deceased and injured. 

OGRA employed third part inspectors, ENAR Petrotech and Imtech along with Chief Inspector Explosives to investigate the root causes of this momentous incident. Findings of the Inspectors are as under:

1. Non-professional driving/vehicle deployed by SPL were the major causes of the incidence.

2. Specific accident could have been avoided and spill could have been contained/minimized provided lorry was compliant to safety laws/rules. The third party lorry deployed by SPL was not in compliance with various Acts and local as well as international standards.

3. SPL failed to furnish detailed report to OGRA despite the fact that they were officially asked to submit it.

4. The lorry TLJ352 was being operated in violation of Petroleum Act 1934 and Petroleum Rules 1937 i.e. it was not carrying mandatory Chief Inspector Explosives – CIE License and the word “Petroleum” was not stamped, embossed or printed on the lorry.

5. The lorry was non-compliant with the rules related to prevention of accident and prevention of escape/leakage of petroleum.

6. The lorry was violating mandatory rules. OGRA notified about the standards to be followed in 2009.

7. SPL confirmed that lorries owned by them are as per international standards whereas hired lorries need up-gradation.

8. National Highway Safety Ordinance – 2000 specify 5 to 6 Axle for the lorries carrying 50,000 liter load whereas this lorry was of 4 Axle.

9. Motor Vehicle Fitness Certificate provided by Shell was fake. This was confirmed by Chief Minister Inspection Team of Punjab.

10. SPL failed to produce preload check list of the lorry which is their responsibility and instead produced the check list of the contractor. The lorry was thus not safe for loading.

11. SPL failed to produce Emergency Response Plan and instead produced ERP of the Third Party Contractor. This was termed as casual behavior of SPL by OGRA.

12. Not the third party but SPL being the licensee of OGRA is solely responsible for the incidence.

As a result of the findings, OGRA imposed a fine of 10 million on SPL for non-compliance and compensation payment of 1 million to each deceased and 0.5 million to each injured. In response to the OGRA decision, PSL responded as follows:

“Shell Pakistan Limited will pay the fine imposed by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) to comply with the regulator's directive. However, we do so while reserving the right to contest the fine. The matter is under investigation, and we will decide on the appropriate course of action once more information is known and investigations have concluded.” 

In plain words SPL has slapped back on the face of regulatory authority OGRA and Ministry of Petroleum, rejecting the investigation and conclusion of the regulatory body and will speak further when their “own” investigation will be concluded and also they will pay the fine but will reserve the right to contest. They are still silent on payment of compensation to victims. This arrogant behavior of this subsidiary of a multinational company is analogous to the situation when a criminal in violation of law says to the judge that he is accepting the verdict conditionally subject to the conclusion of the findings of his own investigation of the crime committed by him. To respond back to the attitude of this MNC, OGRA should suspend their license till completion of their own findings and compliance with the rules and regulations of Pakistan. MD of Shell Pakistan should be placed on Exit Control List if he has already not flown away from the country to avoid the accountability.

This is not the first time that our regulatory authority has shown a very lenient attitude towards a multinational company. They are never confident and always apologetic in front of these foreign companies, no matter what the level of crime committed is. Just to give an example to elaborate the point, Competition Commission of Pakistan imposed a fine of PKR 150 million on Pakistan State Oil on their deceptive marketing practices and false claim of putting an additive in their petroleum products to improve mileage and for greener environment which they discontinued to add years back. In a similar case against Reckitt Benckiser for deceptive marketing claim in their TV Commercials, Competition Commission of Pakistan in their own words took a very lenient view of the violations and imposed a total fine of PKR 1.25 million on five counts of violations. One may argue that cases were different but fact is that charges were same and the penalty imposed on local company was 120 times of that imposed on a multinational company. Also when a local Oil Marketing Company runs deceptive ads (which didn’t kill anybody) they are fined a colossal sum of PKR 150 million and when a multinational Oil Marketing Company is in clear violation of rules and guilty of forged documents which caused death of 218 people and injury to many more, they are merely fined PKR 10 million and that too the MNC has accepted to pay under protest. This is actually the issue of leadership in our government organizations and incompetence is so obvious that they are not even able to exert their authority or even speak when the matter is to safeguard the interest of the country and more specifically the institution they have been entrusted upon.      

The incidence of Ahmedpur East is one of the most tragic events in the history of Pakistan which made the Eid day a day of mourning for us. More than two hundred people were killed and many more were injured and according to the findings of OGRA report SPL was in clear violation of the rules and regulations of the country which resulted in the loss of precious lives but SPL even didn’t bother to reply to the questionnaire sent by OGRA.

In August 1998, a fuel truck making a delivery to the Texaco in Biloxi, Mississippi, USA and petrol leaked from it on the highway which burnt three people. 28.2 million dollar was awarded to the family of the deceased people in the year 2000. This is approximately equivalent to PKR one billion each. In 2017, OGRA is politely asking for only 0.1% of that amount for each victim and SPL has reservation on the fine of merely 10 million Rupees and they are totally silent on payment to victims? The brutal fact is that death of a white man is a serious matter and death of Pakistani is not even worthy of consideration. Politicians, bureaucrats, human right champions, media, Amnesty International and all NGOs are criminally silent on this brutal human tragedy baring few lip services. Just imagine what would have happened with Royal Dutch Shell if the same incidence had occurred in USA or Europe?

PSL has not even accepted the responsibility of the incidence and have not apologized for this tragic incidence which happened just because of the sheer negligence on the part of the top management. Jawwad Cheema, Managing Director Shell Pakistan has just put these words on the website: “We were extremely shocked and saddened to learn of the devastating road-tanker fire near Bahawalpur. Our hearts go out to the families of the victims and our prayers are with the injured.” If the MD is a human possessing guts and some flare of leadership then he should come on the media, apologize to the people of Pakistan for the willful negligence causing so many deaths and injuries and announce a reasonable compensation of at least 10 million to each deceased and 5 million to injured individuals. As a matter of principle he should also take full responsibility of the accident and resign from the position with immediate effect. Why SPL is hesitant in paying compensation to the victims when they are definitely covered by Third Party Liability Insurance and if they are not then it is yet another grave violation? Royal Dutch Shell has both financial ability and past precedence in paying compensation to victims in such cases but they will avoid payment until and unless law makers are determined to chase and bring them to task. Why they are reluctant to pay because they don't want to show their ugly face to the world.

In Bhopal incidence CEO of Union Carbide personally went to India to apologize and was kept there under house arrest. Criminal charges were filed against the company which was later dropped by the court when they agreed to pay the victims in an out of the court settlement allowed by the court. Unfortunately, in Pakistan politicians and bureaucrats place no value to human life when it is a matter of ordinary people. They are so immune to deaths of innocent people that they didn’t even bother to call the Managing Director of SPL to the Ministry of Petroleum and Minerals or in front of Senate Committee for a plausible explanation. The same Ministry and Senate Committees call MD of PSO in one pretext or other every second week for unnecessary explanations and thorough grilling. In this particular case a criminal FIR should be launched against the top officials of the company as is done in such incidences in the rest of the world and those involved in the willful negligence should be prosecuted in the court of law for the sake of rule of the law. This will provide much needed justice to those killed and injured and to their bereaved families. OGRA gave a very easy escape route to SPL but their management lack necessary skills and wisdom to take timely decision and instead they opted to linger on the case by declaring to investigate the matter themselves and they need to be taught lesson and to the rest of the organizations as well by creating an example.

There is also a question not directly linked to the incidence but this long pending query needs to be addressed by the Ministry on top priority. Why a lorry was moving from Karachi to Lahore covering 1200 km and why outlets in Lahore are not being fed from a depot closer to mid country refinery which was specifically built for this purpose. It is not a hidden secret that all OMCs are exploiting the mechanism of IFEM - Internal Fuel Equalization Margin causing inefficiency in supply chain resulting in loss to the national economy. India already deregulated oil market three years back to bring in efficiency and fair competition in this market and don't know for what Ministry of Oil is waiting for to take this necessary step. Probably they want to protect those small players who are surviving on this inefficiency. Who are those small players is also no hidden secret. This sector is being ruined because of dirty vicious circle and rent seeking approach.

Negligence is on the part of our regulators as well. They are surviving on the regulations of 1936 and 1937. They neither have ability nor willingness to make new rules and regulations and enforce them with an iron hand. Laws related to third party employers and vendors need to be revisited to stop exploitation from MNCs. Automakers in Pakistan will also be able to take an easy escape route in case they launch a defective vehicle in the market taking the plea of indirect responsibility. Nobody including the management of MNCs (who are otherwise very boastful about their procedures and ethical values) care if the vehicle carrying highly flammable fuel is in accordance with the safety requirements and is operating under strictly monitored SOPs. If such conditions prevail then such accidents will happen again and again and each time will our officials turn a blind eye towards it? In this serious matter in which more than 200 lives were wasted due to negligence of operators why Supreme Court is not taking Suo Moto notice?