兰州严斥中石油

State-run companies are such mighty pillars of support for regional economies across China that they rarely draw direct criticism from local government officials, even when something goes terribly wrong. So it was highly unusual to hear officials in the northwestern city of Lanzhou criticize a subsidiary of the oil behemoth China National Petroleum Corporation recently over environmental incidents that fouled the community's air, river and drinking water for 3.6 million people. A Lanzhou division of CNPC, whose listed subsidiary is PetroChina, was verbally targeted by city officials at a January 9 press conference called by the city's environmental protection bureau. The new attitude was reflected in statements issued by the Lanzhou environmental bureau's deputy director, Bai Yongping, who said Lanzhou Petrochemical has been expanding without local government supervision at the expense of the environment. No fines have been imposed, nor have any civil or criminal charges been filed in connection with the four serious incidents linked to Lanzhou Petrochemical Co. since spring 2014, although the company's deputy general manager, Wang Shihong, was reportedly reprimanded by a central government-led group of investigators shortly after a severe benzene leak in the provincial capital of Gansu in April. At the press conference, city officials took the unprecedented step of publicly shaming the company for the incidents, the first of which was the benzene leak that contaminated the city's water supply. Lanzhou Petrochemical Co. has repeatedly violated the environmental protection law in the course of just a few months," the city environmental agency said in a written briefing to the media that was followed by a question begging an answer: "As a central government-run enterprise, what social responsibility do you bear?" Lanzhou Petrochemical officials responded after the criticism later with a brief statement: "We are earnestly heeding criticism from the government, and we are abiding by the law by improving our efforts to protect the environment." So far, there have been no comments from Beijing-based CNPC. Local officials went a step further by posting a formal notice in the Communist Party's Gansu Daily newspaper that described in detail how an equipment malfunction at a refinery of Lanzhou Petrochemical Co. had triggered a fire on January 8 that filled the air in some northern parts of the city with toxic smoke. A city official who asked not to be named said Lanzhou Petrochemical may eventually make amends, although no one knows what form or fashion that action might take. A related – and economically pressing – question is whether the city and Lanzhou Petrochemical will move forward with a previously discussed plan to move the refinery to an industrial park outside the city. The Lanzhou government has been promoting the relocation plan since 2011. Officials would like to move not only Lanzhou Petrochemical but other manufacturers to an industrial park 38 kilometers from downtown. So far, no one in an official capacity has publicly mentioned a timeframe for a possible move. Bai said a relocation could cost about 60 billion yuan, a price that the Lanzhou government can't afford and CNPC might be unwilling to pay. Neither is the central government likely to help "because there are some 20 companies nationwide facing the same problems as Lanzhou Petrochemical," Bai said. For Caixin Online, this is Patrick Williams. 长期以来，中国地方政府与驻地央企之间的关系颇为微妙。一方面，央企带来的巨额投资和利润收益为地方带来可观税收，央企被奉为地方政府的座上宾；另一方面，部分央企污染环境、无视地方政府政令等不良行为也令一些地方政府暗生不满。双方化解矛盾，往往通过私下协商的渠道，极少公开过招。 1月9日下午，兰州市环保局主动召集媒体，发出名为《中石油兰州石化公司屡次排污，社会责任何在》的文章。该局官员也高调接受中央人民广播电台等媒体的采访。 1月10日，中央人民广播电台、新华社等播发兰州市政府严斥中石油事件。 1月10日，甘肃省委机关报《甘肃日报》发表《中石油兰州石化分公司再次违法排污》的通报，称1月8日20时20分，中石油兰州石化分公司因设备故障导致火炬气燃烧，排放滚滚黑烟，局部空气质量显著恶化。 在如此高调斥责之下，中石油兰州石化被迫于1月10日晚间作出书面回应：诚恳接受政府监管和批评，依法做好环境保护工作，不断改善区域环境质量，共创兰州碧水蓝天。对于兰州石化的表态， 矛盾看似通过公开喊话的方式获得解决，但知悉内情者告诉财新记者，这次不寻常的公开喊话实际是双方协商难以达成一致后的无奈之举，目前兰州石化也仅是在态度上妥协，行动上如何开展尚未可知。并且，双方更大的争议是——兰州石化的搬迁问题。 事实上，在2014年4月，一个更大的事件曾在兰州发生，应对此次公开喊话有深刻影响。　　 2014年4月，兰州发生“4·11”自来水苯超标事件，导致全城饮水在数天时间内出现危机，造成全国性影响。最终，国家安监部门查明污染原因：临近自来水厂的兰州石化在1987年和2002年的两次旧爆炸事故导致的有害物质泄漏，最终在多年后腐蚀管道，污染了兰州人的饮水命脉。 兰州市政府与兰州石化之间的矛盾激化后，曾有兰州石化中层人士表示，兰州市政府的强硬态度主要意在“逼宫”，迫使兰州石化搬迁，以数百亿元的搬迁工程挽救兰州新区目前日渐式微的发展形态。