BP news stories on Newser

BP Fined $25M for 2006 Alaska Spills

Evann Gastaldo — Wed, 04 May 2011 07:38:53 CDT

Another blow to BP's coffers—and reputation: The oil company has been fined $25 million for two Alaska pipeline spills in 2006 . The civil fines will settle charges arising from both the spills and BP's non-compliance with court orders to properly maintain the pipelines, the New York Times reports. It's...

Feds Grab BP's Blowout Preventer

Mary Papenfuss — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 04:55:17 CDT

No sooner had BP raised the device that was supposed to prevent an oil well blowout in the Gulf of Mexico than the US Coast Guard took possession of it yesterday. The blowout preventer will be a key piece of evidence in the US probe into what went wrong in...

BP Spends $1M a Week on Ads

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 11:12:00 CDT

This is sure to go over real well with the public: BP is expected to report today that it has spent $1 million a week advertising since the oil spill. The figure will be part of the company's report to the US House of Representatives, the Telegraph reports. The ad...

'Static Kill' Worked; Well Is Plugged: BP

Sun, 08 Aug 2010 14:22:45 CDT

The cement sealing the blown oil well in the Gulf of Mexico has hardened as crews prepare for the final phase of drilling a relief well, BP said today. The oil giant said pressure tests on the cement plug poured down the throat of the well show the seal is...

BP May Drill Again Near Blown-Out Well

Nick McMaster — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 16:10:23 CDT

BP workers have moved into the second stage of the " static kill ," ensuring that the well in the Gulf will never again spew forth oil—unless BP resumes drilling into the reservoir beneath it. The company's COO is already suggesting that BP may want to go back for the wealth...

BP: Relief Well May Not Be the Answer

Mon, 02 Aug 2010 14:37:00 CDT

BP officials say the role of a relief well long considered the only surefire way to kill the Gulf oil leak is now unclear. A BP exec said today engineers may pump cement directly into the failed well using a surface ship. The company had already said it might do...

New BP CEO Proposes 'Scaleback' in Cleanup

Fri, 30 Jul 2010 17:21:00 CDT

BP's incoming CEO said today it's time for a "scaleback" of the massive effort to clean up the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, but stressed the commitment to make things right is the same as ever. Tens of thousands of people—many of them idled fishermen—have been involved in...

Defiant Hayward: I Was Spill's Whipping Boy

Jane Yager — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 08:20:00 CDT

"I became a villain for doing the right thing," departing BP head Tony Hayward said in his first interview since resigning, complaining that he had become a whipping boy in the US because "people find it easier to vilify an individual more than a company." In the interview with the...

Rig's Alarm System Disabled on Day of Blast

Fri, 23 Jul 2010 14:26:00 CDT

An electronics technician aboard the ill-fated oil rig Deepwater Horizon told an investigative panel today that an alarm system was partially shut down on the day the rig exploded. Mike Williams said the system was turned on to monitor for fire, explosive gas, and toxic gas but that its sound...