BBC News, 29
January 2013
Related
Stories
 |
| The Deepwater Horizon disaster caused one of the worst oil spills in history |
In
November, BP said it would pay $4bn (£2.5bn) to the US Department of Justice
and agreed to plead guilty to 14 criminal charges.
The sum
included a $1.26bn fine.
The
Deepwater Horizon incident was one of the worst environmental disasters in US
history.
It killed
11 workers and released millions of barrels of crude into the Gulf of Mexico
over 87 days.
At the
latest hearing Luke Keller, a Vice President of BP America, told the court, the
families of the dead, and other victims of the tragedy of the company's regret
and apologised for its role in the Deepwater Horizon accident.
"We -
and by that I mean the men and the women of the management of BP, its board of
directors, and its many employees - are deeply sorry for the tragic loss of the
11 men who died and the others who were injured that day," said Mr Keller.
"Our
guilty plea makes clear, BP understands and acknowledges its role in that
tragedy, and we apologise - BP apologises - to all those injured and especially
to the families of the lost loved ones.
"BP is
also sorry for the harm to the environment that resulted from the spill, and we
apologise to the individuals and communities who were injured."
Two BP
workers have been indicted on manslaughter charges and an ex-manager charged
with misleading Congress.
The oil
giant has been selling assets worth billions of pounds to raise money to settle
all claims. The company is expected to make a final payment of $860m into the
$20bn Gulf of Mexico compensation fund by the end of the year.
The
resolution with the DoJ includes a record criminal fine of $1.26bn, as well as
$2.4bn to be paid to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and $350m to be
paid to the National Academy of Sciences, over a period of five years.
"Today's
guilty plea and sentencing represent a significant step forward in the Justice
Department's ongoing efforts to seek justice on behalf of those affected by one
of the worst environmental disasters in American history," said US
Attorney General Eric Holder.
"I'm
pleased to note that more than half of this landmark resolution - which totals
$4bn in penalties and fines, and represents the single largest criminal
resolution ever - will help to provide direct support to Gulf Coast residents
as communities throughout the region continue to recover and rebuild."
BP will
also pay an $525m to the Securities and Exchange Commission over a period of
three years.
Other
companies involved included Transocean, the owner of the rig and responsible
for the safety valve known as the blowout preventer, and Halliburton, who
provided cementing services.
BP is yet
to reach a settlement with these firms. A civil trial that will determine
negligence is due to begin in New Orleans in February.
Related Article:
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.