ING reaches deal to sell loan to controversial US pipeline project

DutchNews, March 22, 2017

ING has reached an agreement on the sale of its controversial loan to the Dakota Access pipeline in the US. 

The construction has prompted violent clashes between the army and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe who say construction of the pipeline through northern Dakota could affect its drinking water supply and put communities ‘at risk of contamination by crude oil leaks and spills.’

‘The sale follows a constructive dialogue between ING and representatives from the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and has the full support of the tribe,’ ING said in a statement. 

ING officials met tribal leaders on February 10, during which ING said it was ‘willing to either continue trying to positively influence the course of the project, or to distance ourselves by selling our stake in the loan,’ the statement said.

‘In response, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe indicated it would appreciate ING selling its loan in the project, considering that there is less room for lenders to positively influence the project now that construction has resumed, and because it would be a valuable message supporting its call for respectful dialogue.’ 

Under the terms of the sale, which is expected to close shortly, ING will retain a potential risk in case of non-payment under the loan. 

ING was one of 17 banks backing the project to the tune of $2.5bn. ING’s share amounted to some $120m. 

ABN Amro

ABN Amro said in February it is prepared to stop financing one of the companies involved in building the pipeline if an acceptable solution to the problem is not found. 

ABN Amro it is not directly funding the project but has a ‘relationship’ with one of the major investors, Energy Transfer Equity. The bank that if a solution is not found ‘the ultimate consequence will be discontinuation of the relationship’. 

In the meantime, ABN Amro said it will not pursue any new business with ETE until ‘there is clarity regarding the situation and an acceptable outcome has been achieved’.

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BayernLB under pressure over Dakota pipeline investment

Bavaria's state bank is set to invest about $120 million in the Dakota Access Pipeline, which threatens a Native American reservation and drinking water. Other banks have already sold their stake.

Deutsche Welle, 6 February 2017

There aren't many members of the Sioux tribe living in Bavaria but, thanks to the tentacles of international finance, the protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) being built near the US's Standing Rock Indian Reservation have reached the state capital, Munich.

Last week, protesters from an alliance of NGOs arrived on the doorsteps of the BayernLB bank to deliver more than 700,000 signatures collected via worldwide petitions against the investments of 17 financial institutions into DAPL. These included more than 220,000 signatures specifically aimed at BayernLB's contribution that had been collected in a few days. By Monday 6, the online petition had reached close to 300,000 signatures.

Despite an invitation from the environmental campaigners Urgewald, Bavaria's state bank declined to send any representatives outside the building to receive the petition. "But we were allowed to go in with a delegation of three people, and we gave the petition to the press spokesman," said Regine Richter, banking specialist at Urgewald.

The bank itself is unwilling to give interviews on the subject and in response to DW's request would only send the public statement it issued in December, which made many conciliatory noises. "BayernLB is following the running discussions about the route of the pipeline very carefully and, as part of the consortium financing the pipeline, supports an amicable result of the discussions between the parties," it read.

Wait and see

BayernLB said it was waiting on a report from the US law firm Foley Hoag that was commissioned in December to look into how the local indigenous people had been consulted for the project. That report is due out later this month, but it may come too late. In January, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order decreeing that the environmental review for the project be fast-tracked.

"Nobody is really sure that means, but we are concerned that DAPL could get the green light any day now," Nick Pelosi, corporate engagement director for the campaign group First Peoples Worldwide, told DW. "It's such an urgent matter at this point that we really don't have time."

Not only that: The study is being conducted behind closed doors and may be no more than a desktop assessment. "From what we understand, it is a study on tribal consultation, which is the crux of this issue - that the tribe was not consulted properly about this pipeline," Pelosi said. "But nobody's reached out to the tribe, so it's essentially a study on consultation without any consultation."

The 17 banks insist that the loans for DAPL - amounting to $2.5 billion (2.3 billion euros) - are now legally committed. "But some have shown concern and that they are willing to exert the limited influence that they have," Pelosi said.

"I definitely think they're feeling the pressure," he said. "But what the tribe is asking is not necessarily for the banks to pull out, but to use their influence as project lenders to pressure the company into rerouting to avoid their treaty territory."

The banks say that influence appears to be very limited indeed: They argue that they can't impose new conditions on the loans and that it isn't their role to determine the route. "Which is true - it's the US government's responsibility - but we're asking them to support the reroute, not dictate it," Pelosi said.

Dozens of protesters have been arrested
at the Standing Rock reservation

Passive bank

Compared with other banks, BayernLB has been particularly recalcitrant. "BayernLB was one of the few that outright rejected our request for dialogue," said Pelosi.

"BayernLB is being much too passive," Richter said. "Banks like the Dutch ING and the Norwegian DNB are at least expressing public criticism of the pipeline consortium's behavior or are selling stakes in the companies involved."

Meanwhile in Germany, BayernLB's involvement in the project (a $120 million contribution to DAPL) has raised some political hackles - firstly because it is partly owned by the state, and secondly because it received a colossal taxpayer-funded 10 billion-euro ($9.3 billion) bailout during Europe's financial crisis in 2008.

"BayernLB should not be allowed to support the dirty business of climate denier Donald Trump," said Anton Hofreiter, the Greens' parliamentary leader and a native of Bavaria. "This project destroys the environment, is a risk for the drinking water from the Missouri River and, at the same time, desecrates the Native Americans' cultural heritage."

Hofreiter, along with other German politicians, is sure that BayernLB's commitment to the project could be reversed by Bavaria's state government. "I'm sure it's possible," Frank Schwabe, Bundestag member for the Social Democrats, told DW. "The bank has oversight committees, and there is political influence on that, so it would be good if the politicians in Bavaria would take a clear position on it. We're discussing the issue of company and bank responsibility more and more, and I think that a state bank in particular needs to stick to that."

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ING, ABN Amro under renewed pressure over Dakota pipeline

DutchNews, January 25, 2017    

Dutch banks ING and ABN Amro are under renewed pressure about their roles in a controversial pipeline in the US, now president Donald Trump has vowed to press ahead with the project, broadcaster NOS said on Wednesday. 

The construction has prompted violent clashes between the army and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe who say construction of the pipeline through northern Dakota could affect its drinking water supply and put communities ‘at risk of contamination by crude oil leaks and spills.’

ING issued an updated statement on Thursday afternoon saying that it has publicly expressed its concerns about the project.

‘We have signed a contract, which is legally impossible to withdraw from,’ the bank said.  ‘What we can do is use our influence wherever possible to bring the process to a satisfactory outcome for all parties involved. 

The lenders to the pipeline have commissioned additional research to be conducted by an external independent human rights expert and will continue to monitor developments closely, ING said. 

In addition, the bank says it will meet members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in mid February. 

Loans

According to fair banking campaign group Eerlijke Bankwijzer, ING has pumped the equivalent of €233m into the project in direct loans while ABN Amro has lent $45m to companies which are involved with the project. 

ABN Amro stressed earlier that it is not directly funding the project but has a ‘relationship’ with one of the major investors, Energy Transfer Equity.

‘In line with ABN Amro’s policy for sustainable banking, the bank continuously consults with Energy Transfer Equity on developments regarding the Dakota access pipeline, the bank said.

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Greenpeace activists unfurl large "Resist" banner from construction crane blocks from White House to protest Trump https://t.co/PbEg0i5ulN pic.twitter.com/Hsu2Ik2lyY

— AFP news agency (@AFP) January 25, 2017

US authorities to re-route controversial North Dakota pipeline

Yahoo – AFP, Jim Watson, December 5, 2016

US military veterans joined protests against a controversial planned oil pipeline that
have led the Army Corps of Engineers to rethink the route (AFP Photo/JIM WATSON)

Cannon Ball (United States) (AFP) - The US Army Corps of Engineers nixed plans for a controversial oil pipeline crossing in North Dakota, a major victory for Native Americans and environmentalists who had staged months of protests.

The pipeline had been set to cross under the Missouri River and man-made Lake Oahe, which are drinking water sources for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.

"It's clear that there's more work to do," Jo-Ellen Darcy, the US Army's assistant secretary for civil works, said in a statement.

"The best way to complete that work responsibly and expeditiously is to explore alternate routes for the pipeline crossing."

The Standing Rock Sioux objected to building the 1,172-mile (1,886-kilometer) pipeline underneath the river and lake because of fears of possible leaks. The tribe also said the route would cross through areas with sacred historic artifacts.

The conflict between the tribe and pipeline operators Energy Transfer Partners and Sunoco Logistics Partners galvanized North American native tribes and supporters, who have camped in the thousands near the construction site for months in an effort to block it.

'Do the right thing'

Some 2,000 US military veterans joined the protest this week in a symbolically important move before a deadline for demonstrators to vacate the area on Monday.

"We wholeheartedly support the decision of the administration and commend with the utmost gratitude the courage it took on the part of President Obama, the Army Corps, the Department of Justice and the Department of the Interior to take steps to correct the course of history and to do the right thing," Standing Rock Sioux chairman Dave Archambault said in a statement.

"We are not opposed to energy independence, economic development, or national security concerns but we must ensure that these decisions are made with the considerations of our indigenous peoples."

Map charting the route of the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline

(AFP Photo/AFP)

Pipeline operator Energy Transfer Partners did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

However, a group representing the pipeline operators, the Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now, condemned the decision, blaming it on President Barack Obama.

"This purely political decision flies in the face of common sense and the rule of law," it said in a statement. "Unfortunately, it's not surprising that the president would, again, use executive fiat in an attempt to enhance his legacy among the extreme left."

Violent standoff

The Dakota Access Pipeline would snake through four US states, delivering oil from North Dakota to Illinois, where it can be shipped to other parts of the country.

It could help reduce the cost of transporting North Dakota oil, enabling it to better compete with cheaper oil from Canada.

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe filed a lawsuit saying it was railroaded by the pipeline's developer and the US Army Corps of Engineers, responsible for approving construction under the river, but a federal judge denied its request to halt construction in September.

However, the government suspended the pipeline construction project last month, saying more analysis and debate were needed.

Energy Transfer Partners and its co-operator Sunoco Logistics Partners struck back, asking a court to stop regulators from further delaying the project.

The standoff turned violent at times, including last month, when hundreds of protesters clashed with police who fired tear gas, rubber bullets and a water cannon, soaking the crowd in subfreezing temperatures.

Protest organizers said 167 people were hurt, including three Native American tribal elders, and that seven people were hospitalized for severe head injuries.

Activists celebrate at Oceti Sakowin Camp on the edge of the Standing Rock

 Sioux Reservation outside Cannon Ball, North Dakota, after hearing that the Army

 Corps of Engineers has denied the current route for the Dakota Access pipeline

(AFP Photo/JIM WATSON)

Nationwide protests

The standoff has prompted sympathetic protests nationwide, with celebrities, politicians and environmental activists joining the cause.

News of the Army's decision prompted celebration and relief among those who opposed the pipeline route.

"Today, the voices of indigenous people were heard," Rhea Suh, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council, tweeted. "The Standing Rock Sioux & indigenous communities remind us of power of individuals to stand up to demand environmental justice."

Among the project's supporters, North Dakota's Republican Governor Jack Dalrymple, who had ordered the protesters to evacuate on Monday, called the decision a "serious mistake."

He was joined by the state's sole member in the House of Representatives, Kevin Cramer, who said in a statement, "I’m encouraged we will restore law and order next month when we get a president who will not thumb his nose at the rule of law."

But Vermont Senator and former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders praised Sunday's decision, saying, "I appreciate very much President Obama listening to the Native American people and millions of others who believe this pipeline should not be built."

Native Americans ride with raised fists to a sacred burial ground that was

disturbed by bulldozers building the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL)

September 4, 2016 near Cannon Ball, North Dakota (AFP Photo/Robyn Beck)

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Members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe confront bulldozers working on the

Dakota Access Pipeline in an effort to make them stop near Cannon Ball, North

Dakota on September 03, 2016 (AFP Photo/Robyn Beck)

Canada approves tripling capacity of Trans Mountain pipeline to Pacific pic.twitter.com/MF6eOdTBV1

— AFP news agency (@AFP) November 30, 2016

ING, ABN Amro urged to pull out of controversial US pipeline project

DutchNews, November 28, 2016

Amsterdam’s Zuidas business
district. Photo: DutchNews.nl

Dutch banks ING and ABN Amro are being urged to end their investment in a controversial oil pipeline project in the US. 

The construction has prompted violent clashes between the army and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe who say construction of the pipeline through northern Dakota could affect its drinking water supply and put communities ‘at risk of contamination by crude oil leaks and spills.’ 

They also say the pipeline will threaten the environment and destroy Native American burial sites, prayer sites and culturally significant artifacts, CNN reported. 

According to fair banking campaign group Eerlijke Bankwijzer, ING has pumped the equivalent of €233m into the project in direct loans. ABN Amro has lent $45m to companies which are involved with the project. 

ING said in a statement it is concerned about what is going on and is investigating further. However, withdrawing from the project is not an option legally, news agency ANP quotes the bank as saying. 

ABN Amro points out it is not one of the 17 banks actively funding the pipeline and says it is in ‘continuous contact’ with the companies it has backed. This includes ‘explicitly’ ensuring that its concerns about the project are known, ANP said. 

Native Americans ride with raised fists to a sacred burial ground that was

disturbed by bulldozers building the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL),

September 4, 2016 near Cannon Ball, North Dakota (AFP Photo/Robyn Beck)

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Members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe confront bulldozers working on the

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Dakota on September 03, 2016 (AFP Photo/Robyn Beck)

Canada approves tripling capacity of Trans Mountain pipeline to Pacific pic.twitter.com/MF6eOdTBV1

— AFP news agency (@AFP) November 30, 2016

Violence erupts as Native Americans resist oil pipeline

Yahoo – AFP, Nova Safo, September 5, 2016

Native Americans ride with raised fists to a sacred burial ground that was
disturbed by bulldozers building the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL),
September 4, 2016 near Cannon Ball, North Dakota (AFP Photo/Robyn Beck)

Cannon Ball (United States) (AFP) - Protesters camping near Native American lands in North Dakota to protest the construction of an oil pipeline clashed late Saturday with construction company workers they blamed for destroying ancient sites.

Hundreds of protesters confronted a bulldozer crew in an area known as Cannon Ball, amid the vast grasslands of the northern US state.

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe claims the crew dug up and destroyed sacred burial grounds, places of prayer and other cultural artefacts -- even after the pipeline developer had voluntarily paused construction in the disputed area less than a mile (1.6 kilometer) from the tribe's reservation.

Angry protesters broke through a fence and fought with private security guards, who employed dogs and pepper spray.

"They tried to push us back with their trucks and their bulldozers, but we just kept on coming," Seeyouma Nashcid, a protester from Arizona, told AFP.

Some protesters were left bloodied, and displayed signs of dog bites. The Morton County Sherriff's department said three private security guards were injured after being struck with fence posts and flag poles.

The tribe, whose reservation is located just south of where the 1,200-mile (1,900-kilometer) pipeline would cross the Missouri River, has been locked in a court battle to stop the project, which it says would endanger its drinking water and destroy historic sites.

Members of American Indian tribes from across the United States have rallied in support, gathering for months in a makeshift camp near the reservation.

On Saturday, protesters were suddenly alerted to renewed digging, a day after the tribe filed evidence in court of dozens of newly discovered artefacts, grave markers and sacred sites.

Native Americans march to the site of a sacred burial ground that was disturbed

 by bulldozers building the Dakota Access oil pipeline near Cannon Ball, North 

Dakota on September 4, 2016 (AFP Photo/Robyn Beck)

The tribe said in a statement that a two-mile stretch was destroyed before the bulldozer crew was confronted and stopped.

"This demolition is devastating," Standing Rock Sioux Tribe chairman David Archambault said in a statement. "These grounds are the resting places of our ancestors. The ancient cairns and stone prayer rings there cannot be replaced."

Witnesses said law enforcement officers were nearby during Saturday's clashes but did not immediately intervene. But sheriff's spokeswoman Donnell Preskey said deputies "were not on the scene when the conflict initially occurred," and arrived later.

The sheriff's office was notified of the situation by an emergency call from a private security officer.

Citing the safety and security of law enforcement, Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said that the number of protesters made it "unsafe for officers to directly respond until further officers were able to respond."

A federal judge is expected to decide by September 9 whether to grant a temporary injunction to stop the pipeline construction under the river, as the tribe pursues its lawsuit.

The pipeline's US developer Energy Transfer Partners did not return a call for comment placed during a holiday weekend.

Members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe confront bulldozers working on the 

Dakota Access Pipeline in an effort to make them stop near Cannon Ball, North 

Dakota on September 03, 2016 (AFP Photo/Robyn Beck)

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Landslide in southern China leaves dozens missing

Chinese state media say a number of people are missing after a landslide buried buildings in the southern city of Shenzhen. The landslide also reportedly caused an explosion in a gas pipeline.

Deutsche Welle, 20 December 2015

The landslide in Guangdong province on Sunday buried some 22 buildings and left 27 people missing in Shenzhen, which borders Hong Kong, Chinese state media reported.

Earlier reports by the state-run Xinhua news agency spoke of 41 people missing after the landslide, which hit the city's Liuxi Industrial Park, also causing the collapse of at least one building.

Some 700 rescuers are reported to be scouring the site for survivors

Xinhua said four people had so far been rescued from the rubble, three of whom had suffered slight injuries. It was unclear whether there had been any fatalities.

Hundreds of rescuers were at the scene looking for survivors, Xinhua said. Local authorities said most residents had been evacuated from the buildings before the landslide hit.

The official broadcaster China Central Television said a section of the major West-East natural gas pipeline also exploded.

A landslide last month in rural Zhejiang province killed 38 people after burying 27 homes.

tj/jlw (Reuters, dpa, AFP)

Huge China landslide, caused by illegal soil dumping, leaves 91 missing https://t.co/LWMjtmNNj2 pic.twitter.com/X76tnM3DvU

— Agence France-Presse (@AFP) December 21, 2015

Taiwan gas explosions kill at least 24 people, injure many more

At least 24 people have been killed and 270 others injured in a series of underground gas explosions in Taiwan. The blasts came after local residents had reported smelling the scent of gas.

Deutsche Welle, 1 Aug 2014

Thousands of emergency workers and soldiers were deployed to Kaohsiung, Taiwan's second-largest city on Friday, where an operation was ongoing to search for both survivors and victims of the blasts.

Several people were reported missing and local media reports indicated that the death toll could rise sharply.

Four firefighters who had been called to the area to investigate a possible gas leak were reported to have been among those killed in the explosions, which occurred several hours after their arrival.

The blasts, which occurred in a district of Kaohsiung that is packed with shops and apartment buildings, hurled concrete and vehicles through the air and ripped open large craters in several streets.

Taiwan's minister of economic affairs told a press conference on Friday, that the source of the blasts appeared to have been a gas that is a by-product of the processing of fossil fuels.

"Based on our preliminary investigation, the gases spilled included propene," Chang Chia-juch said.

Urban gas pipes to be checked

The gas line that exploded belongs to the state-owned CPC Corporation, according to the Associated Press. The source and cause of the leak was not immediately clear.

Whatever the cause of the blast, Tiawan's president, Ma Ying-jeou pledged that all pipes used by petrochemical companies under urban areas would be checked to avoid a recurrence of the incident.

"We will make further arrangements and inspections to avoid this kind of disaster from occurring again," President Ma said in comments broadcast on Taiwanese television.

The president also expressed his condolences to the families of the victims.

pfd/kms (AP, dpa, Reuters)

The aftermath of the gas explosions in Kaohsiung,
Aug. 1, 2014 (Photo/CNA)

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Chevron oil pipe explodes, 2 injured

Antara News, Thursday, October 28, 2010 13:27 WIB

Pekanbaru, Riau (ANTARA News) - A crude oil pipeline of PT Chevron Pacific Indonesia had burst harming two children in Manggala Jonson Village, Tanah Putih sub district, Rokan Hilir District, Riau province on Thursday.

"Two children were badly burned in the explosion," a resident, Andi said.

The pipeline located near the village burst at 7 am at the local time and also caused injuries to Wanda (6) and Rini (16).

The children were badly injured as they covered by oil and their skin had blisters. The two had been taken to the Chevron medical center, Andi said.

"The sound of the explosion was so loud that I thought it was a bomb. The oil spurt 10 meters high," he said.

Three houses of Anto, Sukidi and Yunus were covered with the crude oil.

The dark black oil spilled the walls, roofs and the yards.

A motorcycle was thrown 15 meters away by the force of the explosion, he said.

The chief of Crime and Investigation Unit of Rohil Police, Adjunct Commissioner Arif Hidayat Ritonga said he had sent a number of police personnel to the location to secure the accident site, near the Trans Sumatran road leading to Medan , North Sumatra.

The company had sent a representative to the location to clear up the oil spill on that also hit a number of houses, he said.

Leaking Pipeline Forces Oil Shutdown

Jakarta Globe, Ririn Radiawati Kusuma | October 01, 2010

A gas pipeline sprung a leak at Chevron Pacific Indonesia’s Duri field in Sumatra, upstream oil and gas authority BPMigas said on Friday, resulting in a drop in production of 200,000 barrels per day. Darwin Zahedy Saleh, left in this file photo, the minister of energy and mineral resources said he was confident that an increase in production could compensate for the losses. (Antara Photo/Widodo S. Jusuf)   

    

Up to 20 percent of the nation’s oil production capacity is offline after a gas pipeline sprung a leak at Chevron Pacific Indonesia’s Duri field in Sumatra, upstream oil and gas authority BPMigas said on Friday.

The regulator said 200,000 barrels per day of production capacity had been shut down due to a leak in a pipeline that supplied natural gas used to power oil-field operations. It said the pipeline should be repaired by Monday, with full production resuming two days later.

“The wells’ recovery will be slow. They have to shut the wells down and reactivate them carefully,” he said.

Darwin Zahedy Saleh, the minister of energy and mineral resources, on Friday said he was confident that an increase in production — once it was resumed — could compensate for the losses and that the government would still meet its 2010 production target.

However, Rudi Rubiandini, an energy analyst and drilling expert from the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), said that the lost production was likely to greatly exceed the government’s forecasts.

He estimated that fixing the underground pipe and returning oil production to normal would likely take more than two weeks, possibly even up to two months, depending on the extent of the damage.

“It will take a long time to fix the problem,” he said. “It depends on the damage to the pipe.”

Rudi added that there was little the government could do to reach its production target for this year.

“This is a huge loss,” he said, noting that CPI was one of the nation’s top oil producers, accounting for about 40 percent of total output.

The halt to production comes with oil companies already struggling to reach the government’s 2010 target of 965,000 bpd, a figure used to make revenue projections in this year’s state budget.

Production averaged 935,000 bpd during the first half of the year, and BPMigas last month said the government would sell three million barrels of crude oil from its stockpile to help meet the revenue target.

About 700 CPI wells and 400 wells operated by Pertamina-Bumi Siak Pusako, a unit of state oil and gas company Pertamina, were also shut down by the failure.

The problem began on Wednesday morning when a leak was discovered in the pipe operated by Transportasi Gas Indonesia. The pipeline, located at Indragiri Hulu in Riau, is used to supply natural gas to the field for drilling works and to generate electricity.

BPMigas first estimated Chevron’s lost production at 32,000 bpd, but that was already raised to 150,000 bpd by Friday afternoon.

CPI’s president director, Abdul Hamid Batubara, declined to set a timeline for a resumption in production.

“We are focused on fixing the pipeline so they [the wells] can function immediately. We are working with TGI to fix this,” he said.

Pri Agung Rakhmanto, an energy analyst with the Reforminer Institute, said he believed the breakdown would not affect the government’s 2010 production target, assuming the problem was fixed within several days. But he added that the target was unlikely to be met anyway.

“The leak is not the reason why the government can’t reach the 2010 oil production target,” he said.

Pri Agung said the incident at the aging Duri oil field should serve as a lesson that more attention was needed to develop new sources for the fuel.

“Optimizing existing blocks is not enough,” he said. “They have to develop more. But this takes time.”