BP to replace Alaska unit chief in wake of troubles at oil field

Oil company BP said Wednesday that it was replacing the head of its Alaskan unit after inadequate maintenance led to leaky pipelines, partial shutdown of the largest U.S. oil field and an investor lawsuit.

Doug Suttles, president of London-based BP’s operations on the Russian island of Sakhalin, will become president of BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc. on Jan. 1, taking over from Steve Marshall, company spokesman Daren Beaudo said in a telephone interview.

BP Chief Executive John Browne, seeking to restore the company’s reputation, has already replaced the head of the company’s U.S. operations and the manager of a Texas refinery where 15 people were killed in an explosion last year.

Employees accused of participating in alleged attempts to manipulate U.S. propane and oil trading have also left.

“There were question marks about the way BP handled the problem, and the management has made mistakes,” Dariusz Kowalczyk, chief investment strategist at CFC Seymour Ltd., said in Hong Kong. “This could appease the U.S. regulators. Getting rid of some of the executives makes sense.”

Pipelines that were shut at Alaska’s Prudhoe Bay oil field in August were neglected for years and BP may have suppressed worker complaints, U.S. lawmakers said in September.

Production at the oil field has resumed but is still below pre-shutdown levels.