BP Pays $13 Million in Fines for the Texas City Refinery

Oil conglomerate British Petroleum (BP) has agreed to an additional $13 million to settle charges of failing to correct safety violations at its Texas City oil refinery after a 2005 explosion killed 15 workers.

The settlement announced Thursday morning is the latest in BP resolving hundreds of violations at the plant alleged by OSHA. BP paid $50 million in 2010 to settle other OSHA violations.

Resolving the fines could help BP in its effort to sell the Texas City refinery, now the nation's sixth largest.

The settlement comes as BP is still nursing its reputation and resolve litigation over the massive 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico which dumped millions of gallons in the water.

Iain Conn, BP's global head of refining and marketing, said the company is committed to safety and to "a strong relationship" with OSHA.

The settlement resolves all but 30 of more than 700 violations discovered at the plant in 2009.