SAO PAULO (AP) A federal judge in Brazil has dismissed a civil lawsuit against Chevron Corp. and driller Transocean Ltd. filed in connection with a 2011 oil spill off the coast of Rio de Janeiro.
A federal court official in Rio de Janeiro Tuesday said that judge Raffaele Felice
Pirro decided to dismiss the case on Friday after Chevron agreed to pay the equivalent of about $150 million in "compensatory activities." The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of internal regulations, said the ruling was announced late Monday.
The prosecutor's office said it had no immediate comment, and Chevron did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
The official said Pirro's ruling "brings to an end" a legal battle that lasted nearly two years.
Federal prosecutors had been seeking about $20 billion in damages for an estimated 110,000 gallons (416,300 liters) of crude that seeped into the ocean near the Chevron well in Nov. 2011. The leaks resumed several months later, and the company's production in the Frade field was suspended. The field had been producing around 62,000 barrels a day.
