Cases / Oil spill · United States · 2012–2013
Chevron pleads no contest to six counts over 2012 Richmond refinery fire
Short record: the main facts, with sources. A full case file has not been prepared.
Nature's voice · report
No measurement of the harm done to me here is on record.
Did nature suffer? Not measured.
A fire at Chevron's Richmond refinery in August 2012 led about 15,000 people to seek hospital treatment. Chevron pleaded no contest in 2013; the sources reviewed do not describe any environmental damage.
What?
Chevron pleaded no contest to six counts over the August 2012 fire at its Richmond refinery; about $2M was reported. Oil & Gas Journal
Where?
Richmond refinery, California, United States Oil & Gas Journal
When?
Fire on 6 August 2012; no contest plea in August 2013 Oil & Gas Journal
Who?
Gained
None on recordLost
None on recordHarmed
- About 15,000 people — sought hospital treatment after the fire Oil & Gas Journal
Why?
Not stated in the sources reviewed.
How?
Refinery fire; the sources reviewed do not give its cause. Oil & Gas Journal
6 of 6 questions answered from the record
What happened
The record, in order.
Oil & Gas Journal reported that a fire at Chevron's Richmond refinery on 6 August 2012 led about 15,000 people to seek hospital treatment.
The same report said Chevron pleaded no contest to six counts in August 2013, with about $2M reported.
In court and with insurers
Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.
Lawsuits and rulings
No court case on record. No court has ruled on this case.
Insurers
No insurer decision on record.
What we don't know
Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.
Nature
- Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.
Record
- None on record The sources reviewed do not give the cause of the fire or describe any environmental damage.
- None on record The court or forum for the no contest plea is not named in the sources reviewed.
- None on record Who gained from the refinery operations is not stated in the sources reviewed.
Did the harm stop?
Not stated in the sources reviewed.
Who paid?
Not stated in the sources reviewed.
Sources
Voices on record: — Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts✓ Press and investigations— Communities and civil society— Researchers
Press and investigations
- Chevron settles charges stemming from Richmond refinery fireOil & Gas Journal · Aug 2013
Connected cases
Related matters, and cases linked to this one through the same organisations, with the role each played in both.
- Chevron owns Richmond's 'local news' site, which carries no leak reporting United States · date not stated
- Chevron (Company) — here: company that pleaded no contest; there: owner of the news site
- Chevron, Texaco and the Lago Agrio judgment: the RICO ruling and the Donziger cases Ecuador · 1995–2026
- Chevron (Company) — here: company that pleaded no contest; there: Defendant in the Ecuadorian judgment; plaintiff in the US RICO case; claimant in the arbitration
- COP28 decision promoted carbon capture and left room for transition fuels United Arab Emirates · 2023
- Chevron (Company) — here: company that pleaded no contest; there: Member of the Global CCS Institute
- EU narrows supply-chain law and delays deforestation rule twice European Union · 2024–2026
- Chevron (Company) — here: company that pleaded no contest; there: Named in leaked documents on the supply-chain law
- Gorgon LNG carbon storage fell short; gap closed with credits Australia · 2006
- Chevron (Company) — here: company that pleaded no contest; there: operator of Gorgon LNG
- Hess agreed to buy at least $750m of Guyana forest credits Guyana · 2022–2032
- Chevron (Company) — here: company that pleaded no contest; there: acquired Hess
- Hill & Knowlton and Edelman: PR for fossil fuel clients and climate summits Egypt · 2005–2025
- Chevron (Company) — here: company that pleaded no contest; there: agency client
- Isle de Jean Charles relocation and a $744.6m Chevron coastal-loss verdict United States · 2016–2026
- Chevron (Company) — here: company that pleaded no contest; there: Defendant in the Plaquemines Parish coastal-loss case
- Paraquat litigation (Syngenta/Chevron) and the Paraquat Papers United States · 1958–2026
- Chevron (Company) — here: company that pleaded no contest; there: US distributor of paraquat, 1966 to 1986
- US budget law cuts fossil fuel royalties and sets 4 million coal acres for leasing United States · 2025
- Chevron (Company) — here: company that pleaded no contest; there: Named inauguration-fund donor