BP sues contractors for billions over US oil spill
BP has spent the past year trying to spread the blame for its Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
The oil giant has now made it official, suing Halliburton, the firm that cemented the Macondo well, and rig-owner Transocean for at least $40 billion (£24.2 billion) each.
BP claimed Halliburton concealed crucial information about failed cement tests which could have prevented the disaster, that killed 11 men and caused 4.9 million barrels of oil to gush into the Gulf. It is seeking damages up to the total cost of the spill, which it has put at $42 billion, plus interest, legal costs and damages. A BP spokesman said: "Halliburton's misconduct contributed to the accident and spill... It has persistently refused to co-operate with ongoing investigations into the accident, to accept its role in causing it, and to learn lessons from the incident to improve business practices."
Last night - the anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon blowout - was the statutory deadline for filing claims related to the disaster, and BP also sued rig operator Transocean. It said: "As the owner and operator of the Deepwater Horizon rig, Transocean is a responsible party under the Oil Pollution Act BP is seeking relief including Transocean's proportionate share of the costs and damages related to the accident and oil spill."
The oil major fired a further lawsuit at Cameron International, the US firm which made the "blowout preventer" which BP believes didn't work in the run up to last year's spill. Analysts said they expected all of the lawsuits to result in settlements that will see the firms making some contribution to BP's final bill rather than being publicly dragged out in court.
BP tried to blame its contractors, particularly Transocean, in the wake of Deepwater Horizon, but although President Obama's investigation into the event criticised the firms, most of the censure was directed at BP.
The company has set up a $20 billion trust fund as part of its pledge to make the area "whole", and has so far paid $3.9 billion to 177,000 claimants.
