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BP: September 2010

BP: Spill Claimants Can't Sue Until They're Denied By The Escrow Fund First

Rachel Slajda | September 14, 2010, 12:55PM

A seafood wholesaler, who has sued BP

People hurt by the Gulf oil spill can't sue BP until after they take their claim to the oil company's $20 billion escrow fund, BP argued in a court memo filed yesterday.

BP's lawyers say the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 requires victims to bring their claims directly to the responsible party first. In this case, BP says, that's the escrow fund funded by BP and administered by Kenneth Feinberg.

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Topics: BP, Deepwater Horizon, Gulf Coast Oil Spill

Gulf Coast Oil Spill

BP Thinks Oil Spill Claims Will Come In Under $20 Billion

Rachel Slajda | September 13, 2010, 9:31AM

Aerial view of oil being burned from the BP Deepwater Horizon platform

BP executives believe that claims related to the Gulf oil spill will total less than $20 billion, the amount the oil company has committed to a fund meant to pay those claims.

Incoming CEO Bob Dudley told analysts he expects to pay less than the $20 billion in claims, but said the total price tag is expected to be around $32 billion.

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Topics: BP, Bob Dudley, Gulf Coast Oil Spill

Gulf Coast Oil Spill

BP: Blowout Preventer Failed Partly Because We Didn't Maintain It Correctly

Rachel Slajda | September 8, 2010, 3:16PM

The Deepwater Horizon blowout preventer.

The Deepwater Horizon's blowout preventer, the massive structure meant to stop the well from blowing out and spilling millions of barrels of oil, failed in part because BP and its contractors weren't keeping up with its maintenance, BP's own investigation into the disaster found.

In a report released today, BP's investigators wrote that the blowout preventer had problems when the well blew on April 20 -- problems that could have been detected.

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Topics: BP, Deepwater Horizon, Gulf Coast Oil Spill

Gulf Coast Oil Spill

BP Investigation Released: The Oil Spill Was Everybody's Fault

Rachel Slajda | September 8, 2010, 10:13AM

An explosion at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig

BP today released the report of its own investigation into what caused the Deepwater Horizon to explode and leak millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

We're still digging through the 193-page report, which you can find here, along with the appendices and executive summary. But according to BP's quick-summary press release, the company found that everyone involved had a hand in the disaster.

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Topics: BP, Deepwater Horizon, Gulf Coast Oil Spill

BP

BP: If You Limit Our Production, We'll Limit Our Generosity

Rachel Slajda | September 3, 2010, 9:16AM

The Deepwater Horizon rig burning before it sank

Via the New York Times this morning, BP is using its voluntary funding of several programs -- $100 million for unemployed rig workers, $500 million for research, $90 million for Gulf Coast tourism -- as a bargaining chip to try to get lawmakers to back down from punitive legislation.

BP has agreed to voluntarily fund a slew of programs related to Gulf restoration beyond its legal obligations, and state and federal officials are pushing for more. But the company is warning that proposed legislation that would limit its Gulf oil production would also limit its generosity.

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Topics: BP, Gulf Coast Oil Spill

BP

BP Spent $93.4 Million On Advertising Between April And July

Rachel Slajda | September 1, 2010, 1:08PM

A still from a BP ad titled "Making It Right: Cleanup"

BP spent $93.4 million on U.S. advertising efforts between April, when the Deepwater Horizon exploded, and the end of the July.

According to Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), who's heading one of the investigations into the oil spill, that's three times the amount BP spent on advertising in the same period last year.