Oil slick reduced in Brazil's offshore

The size of a oil slack off Brazil's southeastern coast has been considerably reduced, National Petroleum Agency said on Tuesday.

The agency released new footage of the leaking well operated by U.S.-based Chevron Corp. off the coast of Rio de Janeiro state, saying the size of the slack, which started on Nov. 7, decreased from 12 to 2 square kilometers in the past few days.

On Monday, Brazil's environmental protection agency said it will fine Chevron 50 million reais (27.8 million U.S. dollars) for the spill, but the company may be punished again if the Brazilian authorities find their response to the accident inadequate or if they use methods that could bring damage to environment to clean the spill.

The new fines may surpass 100 million reais (55 million U.S. dollars), and the company may even lose the license to drill in Brazil. Chevron currently holds a class-A license, which allows it to drill even in the country's pre-salt layer oil fields.

Local daily O Globo reported that President Dilma Rousseff, who used to be energy minister and served on the board of state-owned oil giant Petrobras, was angry over Chevron's tactics, and had requested a full investigation into the accident.