But the trend will likely continue upward, perhaps interrupted by short oversupply panics as well as the usual refinery fires, pipeline breaks, political posturing in producing nations, natural disasters, field depletions, dry-hole exploratory disappointments, shipping interruptions and the like.
PKN is buying the refinery in spite of a fire and pipeline accident that hurt profits at the plant.
It is a big job, but Dudley's five priorities are clear: Schmooze the US Once the most swaggering energy enterprise, BP has been brought low by the Gulf of Mexico well blowout and by the Texas City refinery fire, Alaskan pipeline spills and propylene trading probes.
Department spokespeople claimed the action was necessary to put out fires that pipeline opponents had allegedly set, and said police used "non-lethal" force to control a "riot" by "very aggressive" protesters, who prefer to be called "water protectors".
Fong also claimed that protesters set fire to multiple pipeline excavators.
The upgrades were proposed after the 2010 San Bruno pipeline fire, and initially, P.G.& E. wanted customers to absorb 85 percent of the cost.
In all three instances, BP is accused of ignoring earlier signs of trouble, and, in the case of the fire and the pipeline, of putting profits before safety.
Firefighters tried to douse burning pools of gasoline today in southern Nigeria, struggling to extinguish a pipeline fire as villagers hastily buried charred bodies.
The fines for that period, about $14 million, ranged from $1,000 for an inspection violation to a high of $2.4 million for the oil fire and Enbridge Energy pipeline spill in November 2007 that killed two people near Clearbrook, Minn.
New technology helps: Pfizer has tested issuing reps with tablet PCs so they can answer doctors' questions in greater depth.Bristol-Myers Squibb has moved to using contract salespeople, who are easier to hire and fire as the pipeline fills and empties.
