The Baker Panel Report - ABSA

The Panel’s FindingsThe Panel focused on deficiencies relating to corporate safety culture, process safetymanagement systems, and performance evaluation, corrective action, and corporate oversight.QUALIFICATIONS RELATING TO THE PANEL’S FINDINGSThe Panel’s charter calls for assessments of effectiveness and recommendations forimprovement, not for findings related to legal compliance. In making its findings andrecommendations, the Panel’s objective was excellence in process safety performance, notlegal compliance. As a result, the Panel’s report and specifically the Panel’s findings arenot intended for use in legal proceedings to which BP is or may become a party. Rather, thePanel’s findings provide a basis for recommendations to BP for making improvements inBP’s corporate safety culture, process safety management systems, and corporate safetyoversight. The Panel’s report focuses primarily on identified deficiencies that might becorrected through the implementation of its recommendations rather than BP’s positiveattributes that the Panel observed during the course of its review.The Panel often based its findings and recommendations on general principles of industrybest practices or other standards for reducing process risks. Observance of these standardsshould result in improved safety performance even though many of these standards do notnecessarily have legal effect. The Panel’s findings are based not only on the informationdeveloped during the course of the Panel’s review, but also on the collective experience andexpertise of the Panel members.In making its findings andrecommendations, the Panel’sobjective was excellence inprocess safety performance,not legal compliance.The Panel often based itsfindings and recommendationson general principles of industrybest practices or other standardsfor reducing process risks.Finally, the Panel’s findings are based on its assessment that occurred during 2006. Sincethe Texas City accident, BP has undertaken or announced a number of measures, includingdedicating significant resources and personnel, that are intended to improve the processsafety performance at BP’s five U.S. refineries. Taken at face value, these measuresrepresent a major commitment to an improved process safety regime. For a brief listing ofthe measures that BP has undertaken or announced since March 2005, see “BP Post-TexasCity Measures” in Appendix F.SUMMARY OF THE PANEL’S FINDINGSThe findings of the Panel are summarized below under three headings: Corporate SafetyCulture; Process Safety Management Systems; and Performance Evaluation, CorrectiveAction, and Corporate Oversight. This summary of findings should be read in conjunctionwith, and is qualified by, the more detailed discussion of the findings contained in SectionsVI.A, B, and C.The B.P. U.S. Refineries Independent Safety Review Panelxi