CITGO Safety Rates Continue to Improve in 2011

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Aug 06, 2012, 12:00 ET

HOUSTON, Aug. 6, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- CITGO Petroleum Corporation saw a significant improvement in its refining safety performance in 2011 with both its total recordable incident rate (TRIR) and days away, restricted, or transferred (DART) rate falling to about half of what they were the previous year. According to industry figures recently released by the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM), CITGO excelled in these two safety metrics with results significantly lower than the refining industry average.

"These results show that at CITGO, we truly have a culture of safety and those practices are integrated into everything we do. Our people and their well-being always come first. We also understand that in addition to personal safety, process safety is a key part of the equation. Therefore, we take a holistic approach with a strong commitment to continuous improvement practices and have adjusted our internal safety index metrics accordingly," said CITGO president and CEO Alejandro Granado.

The CITGO refining TRIR dropped from 0.41 in 2010 to 0.16 in 2011. The 2011 TRIR represents roughly one fifth of the industry operating company employee average of 0.81 as reported by AFPM in its "Summary of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses." The TRIR is a calculation of the number of recordable incidents that a company or project experiences per 100 full-time employees in any given time frame.

Similarly, the CITGO refining DART fell from 0.16 in 2010 to 0.08 in 2011. The 2011 DART also marks a rate of approximately five times less than the industry average of 0.41. The DART is a calculation of the number of recordable injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time employees that resulted in days away from work, restricted work activity and/or job transfer that a company or project experiences in any given time frame, such as a project life cycle.

In May, AFPM recognized CITGO with eight awards for various safety achievements in 2011. The awards included three Meritorious Safety Performance Awards, one for each of the three CITGO refineries. CITGO was also recognized with five Achievement Awards, with the refineries in Corpus Christi, Texas and Lemont, Ill., both earning two and one going to the refinery in Lake Charles, La.

Also in May, the CITGO Terminal Facilities and Pipeline group was awarded the 2012 Platinum Award for Safety at the International Liquid Terminals Association's (ILTA) 32^nd Annual Operating Conference and Trade Show. This award is the highest achievement award given by ILTA. It recognizes companies that have achieved outstanding safety and health performance through promoting and practicing safety awareness and minimizing workplace incidents and injuries.

"We have very valuable assets at CITGO: our pipelines, terminals, lubricant plants and refineries. But these would not be worth anything if not for our most valuable and important asset –our people. CITGO is where it is today because of the quality individuals we have at our company who every day put safety first – for the organization and the surrounding community," Granado said.

CITGO, based in Houston, is a refiner, transporter and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products. The company is owned by PDV America, Inc., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A., the national oil company of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

For more information, visit www.citgo.com.

SOURCE CITGO Petroleum Corporation