Boston, MA 10/28/2013 (wallstreetpr) – The U.K. oil and gas major BP Plc (ADR) (NYSE:BP) believes that the conclusion prolonged legal battle it has been facing over the 2010 U.S. Gulf oil spill will finally give it respite so that it can channel its attention on other business developments. The cause of destruction to the BP deep water rigs which led to the huge oil spill is still unexplained.
Follow the oil spill Fed and individual claimants have been waging legal battles against BP to determine the extent to which the operations of the integrated oil and gas major were responsible for the spill damages. In view of this, a trail had been initiated to asses the size of the oil spill and possible damages and on October 18, lawyers for the federal government and BP concluded their submissions. The U.S. District Judge will rule on the amount of liability fine that BP will pay under the so-called Clean Water Act. Once this fine has been determined, yet another round of faceoff is expected between the oil major and the federal government over the impact of the 2010 oil spill. It has to be recalled that BP already bears an exemplary fine of $7.8 billion following a court ruling in April that the company was guilty for negligence in its operations thereby leading to the damages and deaths at the coast line.
People in the know about cases regarding environmental disasters and the provisions of the Clean Water Act say that the cornered BP might pay several billions of dollars for its liability.
The integrated oil and gas company operates in two business segments which are exploration & production, and refining & marketing. It provides fuel, energy, lubricants and a host of other petrochemical products. At the close of business on October 25, the stock gained 0.18% to close at $43.66. It has $137.40 billion in market cap.
