BP oil spill costs top $2 bn, sees over 65,000 claims

Even as it continued to grapple with mounting problems, embattled British energy major BP Plc today revised expenses related to the Mexican Gulf oil disaster upwards to $2 billion.

Under pressure from the United States administration to speed up efforts to contain the oil spill and compensate victims, BP had announced a $20-billion claims fund.

"The cost of response to date amounts to approximately $2 billion, including the cost of the spill response, containment, relief well drilling, grants to the Gulf states, claims paid, and federal costs," BP said in a statement.

Last week, BP had pegged oil spill-related costs at $1.4 billion.

Till date, the oil major has received over 65,000 claims. More than 32,000 payments have been made, totalling over $105 million.

Signalling that costs could rise, BP noted that it is still too early to quantify other potential costs and liabilities associated with the incident.

The disaster was caused by an explosion in April on the Deepwater Horizon rig in the Gulf of Mexico, and thousands of barrels of oil are estimated to be leaking into the Gulf of Mexico every day.

Going by reports, the total cost due to the oil spill is projected to be around $50 billion.

Apart from difficulties in containing the oil spill, the company is facing resistance from a partner with regard to sharing the responsibility for the disaster.

BP asserted that it is committed to cleaning up the oil spill and related legitimate claims, despite its dispute with partner Anadarko Petroleum Corporation.

Anadarko Petroleum has claimed that BP was grossly negligent or engaged in "willful misconduct" as operator for Mississippi Canyon, Block 252 (MC252), where the explosion happened.

"These allegations will neither distract the company's focus on stopping the leak nor alter our commitment to restore the Gulf coast," BP chief Tony Hayward said.

BP Exploration & Production (BPXP), a part of BP Group, and two other parties, including Anadarko Petroleum, co-own the leasehold interest in MC252.

BP said plans are being developed for further options to provide additional containment capacity and flexibility.

"These projects are anticipated to begin operations around mid-July," it added.