US slaps BP with new 51-million-dollar spill bill Washington (AFP) June 21, 2010 The White House on Monday slapped BP with a new 51-million-dollar bill, the third sent to the British energy giant and its partners for government expenses incurred in efforts to halt the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Officials have stressed that they would keep billing the British energy giant for all associated costs from America's biggest-ever environmental disaster, under a US law requiring oil firms to pay for cleanups. "As a responsible party, BP is financially responsible for all costs associated with the response to the spill," the administration said. That includes "efforts to stop the leak at its source, reduce the spread of oil, protect the shoreline and mitigate damages, as well as long term recovery efforts to ensure that all individuals and communities impacted by the spill are made whole." Two earlier bills to BP and other responsible parties this month amounting to 70.89 million dollars were paid in full, it said in a statement. The invoice charges the firms for "specific federal government expenses" including response costs for more than 24 federal entities and agencies from three US states, as well as for reimbursing the trust fund set up by BP and the government to reimburse local individuals and businesses affected by the massive spill. The Oil Pollution Act of 1990, enacted after the Exxon Valdez oil disaster in Alaska, made oil giants liable for cleanup costs resulting from spills and is being used by the administration to hold BP's feet to the fire. Obama has also vowed to hold BP responsible if it is found that the company broke any laws before the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon rig in April. BP said Monday it has so far spent two billion dollars on the spill, including ongoing efforts at containment, relief well drilling, grants to Gulf states, claims paid to thousands of affected individuals and businesses, and costs incurred by the US government.
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BP chief plans trip to Russia to offer reassurances: report London (AFP) June 21, 2010 BP chief executive Tony Hayward is planning a trip to Russia to reassure President Dmitry Medvedev the oil giant is not on the verge of collapse, the Financial Times reported Monday. Hayward will meet with Medvedev and tell him that BP can meet the cost of the liabilities from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, said the paper, without citing a source. The timing of the trip has not been finalised ... read more |
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