Repsol estimates the cost of cleaning up and repairing the oil spill in Peru at 57 million euros

The Spanish oil company Repsol calculates the cost of cleaning and repairing the oil spill that occurred on January 15 off the Peruvian coast at around 65 million dollars (57 million euros).

"What we see so far is that the cost will be around that amount, although it could grow in the coming weeks," said the energy company's chief executive, Josu Jon Imaz, at the press conference with analysts after the presentation of results.

Imaz is confident that the "major part" of that figure will be covered by insurance companies.

The spill, of just over 10,000 barrels and occurred on the outskirts of Lima, affects an area equivalent to the surface of the city of Paris.

This Friday, at a press conference held in the Peruvian capital, the president of Repsol in the Andean country, Jaime Fernández-Cuesta, referred to the aforementioned figure of 65 million dollars as "the best estimate" that is available and which includes both the costs of cleaning, as well as those of repair and assistance to the communities affected by the black spot.

But not any fine or compensation to the State, "which will have to be added in your case."

“If responsibility or guilt is defined, we will attend to all fines as required.

But they are not accounted for in this estimate”, he added, while noting that the spill lasted “minutes”.

Until now, the company has only faced fines of about 1.5 million soles (355,000 euros).

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Repsol blames the disaster on the owner of the ship that, while unloading crude oil in the largest refinery in the country -owned by the oil company-, had an uncontrolled movement.

As this newspaper advanced last Monday, the Spanish oil company will file a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against the company, of Italian origin.

In the conference with the media held this Friday, the head of the oil company in Peru has quantified the progress of the rehabilitation work at 79%.

The cleaning of the sea surface, he has said, will be completed this week while at the end of February the repair tasks of the beaches with better accessibility will be completed.

Those with the most difficult access will end in March.

"The models we use suggest that the [environmental] impact should be limited," confided Fernández-Cuesta, who has been prevented by Peruvian justice from leaving the country in the next year and a half.

Three other executives of the multinational are in the same situation.

According to a report by the Finnish company Lamor —one of the firms contracted by Repsol to carry out the restoration of the coastline to its original state—, last Tuesday almost 98% of the crude oil spilled in the sea or on land was collected and there were no residues on the seabed.

The figures provided this Friday by the oil company indicate that the affected coastal strip is around 106 square kilometers, the equivalent of the area occupied by the city of Paris and twice that of the island of Manhattan (New York).

The spill is already one of the biggest environmental disasters suffered by the South American country, with a substantial impact on several specially protected areas.