BEIJING/SINGAPORE (Reuters) – A fire blazing at an offshore oil production platform operated by CNOOC Ltd in northern China has left three people missing, the financial publication Caixin said on Thursday.
Monday’s accident at Penglai 19-3 oilfield in Bohai Bay followed an oil spill during the drilling of a well, forcing the operator to evacuate workers from the site, Caixin added.
CNOOC, China’s biggest offshore oil and gas producer, holds a 51% interest in the Penglai project, with the rest held by the Chinese subsidiary of U.S. oil giant ConocoPhillips.
A CNOOC representative did not immediately comment on the incident. A media official of ConocoPhillips China did not immediately respond to a Reuters email seeking comment.
The fire at the WHPV platform V29 had not yet been put out by Thursday, Caixin said, adding that it was unclear how much oil had been spilled.
(Reporting by Muyu Xu in Beijing and Chen Aizhu in Singapore; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
