The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency and Justice Department revealed Exxon Mobil will be paying nearly $6.1 million in civil penalties for violating a court-approved Clean Air Act agreement.

According to EPA, the failure of Exxon to monitor sulfur content in certain fuel gas streams burnt in refinery furnaces, is a direct breach of a 2005 settlement between the oil company and federal regulators.

On its part, in its statement, Exxon says while conducting a November 2006 environmental self audit at their Baytown, Texas refinery, they have discovered some fuel gas streams have not been addressed in the settlement, and have reported these findings to the EPA, which means all streams now meet EPA standards.

As per the original agreement, Exxon is also required to pay an additional $7.7 million civil penalty, $6.7 million in environmental projects in areas surrounding the company's refineries, inlcuding installing pollution controls at six of its U. S. refineries.

Granta Nakayama, Asstt. Administrator for EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance in her statement states: 'The 2005 settlement has already resulted in major reductions in air emissions from the company's refineries, but we need full compliance to realize all the benefits of the settlement.'

Other three Exxon refineries with EPA violations and required to pay the fine are located in Beaumont, Texas, Torrance, California, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Shares of Exxon Mobil were recently down 1.1% at $82.21 as crude-oil futures briefly fell below $40 a barrel for the first time in 4 1/2 years.