Wood Group PSN (WGPSN) has been charged along with two other companies over an oil rig explosion in 2012.
Prosecutors in the US have also charged Black Elk Energy Offshore Operations as well as a Louisiana-based Grand Isle Shipyard and three individuals with crimes related to the 2012 incident.
The US Department of Justice said the move had been made by its Environment and Natural Resources Division and the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana.
At the time of the incident Black Elk operated the West Delta 32 oil platform 17 miles southeast of Grand Isle, Louisiana.
Grand Isle Shipyard and Wood Group PSN had also both been involved in different capacities while construction work was being carried out on the platform at the time of the incident.
Three contract workers were killed in the explosion and oil was leaked into the Gulf of Mexico.
Black Elk and Grand Isle Shipyard have been charged with three counts of involuntary manslaughter and eight counts of failing to follow proper safety practices under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act and one count of violating the Clean Water Act.
Meanwhile WGPSN and three individual s have been charged with felony violations of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act as well as one count of violating the Clean Water Act, but not with manslaughter.
WGPSN said in response to the charges that it noted it was one of six contractors working on the platform when the incident had occurred.
The company also said at the time it had not been informed that “hot work” was going to occur on the particular unit on the day of the incident.
A spokesman said had it known, it “would have taken appropriate action to isolate the unit as our safety policies and procedures dictate.”
Charges have alleged certain safety precautions which were required before work could commence were not followed, which resulted in the explosion.