Three years after Gulf spill, BP fights billions in fines

Three years after a deadly explosion on a BP-leased drilling rig unleashed the worst environmental disaster in US history, the British energy giant is fighting to avoid billions in fines.

BP’s lawyers are trying to convince a federal judge that the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill was not a result of gross negligence and to shift some blame -- and cost -- to its subcontractors at a blockbuster trial in New Orleans.

But after weeks of damning testimony describing how BP and its subcontractors ignored multiple warning signs prior to the April 20 explosion aboard the Deepwater Horizon, experts say the case against BP is strong.

“There’s been an awful lot of evidence indicating they (BP) ignored normal procedures and were in effective control of the oil rig platform even though it was owned by Transocean,” said Ed Sherman, a Tulane Law professor who has closely monitored the case.

A finding of gross negligence increases the maximum potential fines under the Clean Water Act to US$17 billion (HK$131.96 billion) from US$4.5 billion (HK$34.93 billion) and leaves BP open to punitive damages in other claims.

US District Judge Carl Barbier has discretion in determining how much of a penalty to impose and whether rig operator Transocean and subcontractor Halliburton, which was responsible for the runaway well’s faulty cement job, should pay a portion of the spill’s massive cost.