Russian explosion

28 November 2005 00:01  [Source: ICB]

Russia’s Voronezh­sintezkauchuk synthetic rubber plant at Voronezh in Central Russia, was shut for several hours last week after one of its styrene-processing facilities exploded, the company said.

One employee died in the blast and two others were seriously wounded. The ensuing fire destroyed 500m2 of the plant’s styrene-processing unit No 25. A spokesman said: ‘the plant’s synthetic rubber output will not be affected by the incident.’

Voronezh prosecutors launched a criminal probe into the incident, investigating possible violations of safety rules.

The prosecutor’s office has ruled out the possibility of a premeditated explosion, municipal prosecutor Sergei Artemyev said.

Voronezhsintezkauchuk (Voronezh Rubber Co) is a subsidiary of Russian petrochemicals holding company Sibur.

In the period January-Septemb­er 2005, Voronezh­sintezkauchuk produced 166 000 tonne of synthetic rubber, 13.9% up year-on-year. Roughly half of the company’s output is exported.

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