By
This Is Money Reporter
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BP has persuaded US environment watchdogs to stop freezing it out of federal government contracts as punishment for the fatal Gulf of Mexico oil disaster in 2010.
The oil giant said it had reached an agreement with America’s Environmental Protection Agency which will also see it withdraw a lawsuit challenging the suspension and open the way for it to enter into new leases in the Gulf.
Britain backed efforts to lift the ban and in December filed a statement to a US court considering the case that it ‘may have been excessive’.
Fatal disaster: Rig accident killed 11 workers and spilled millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico
The company’s prospects are seen as important to UK jobs, while its stock is also widely held by homegrown pension funds and ordinary investors who buy it partly for the income.
BP halted dividend payouts after Deepwater but has since resumed them, and the shares yield 4.86 per cent. The firm’s shares were 2.88p higher at 481.38p in early trading today.
BP was suspended from performing any new government work in America in November 2012, after it agreed to plead guilty and pay a $4.5billion fine (£2.8billion) for criminal charges over the Deepwater Horizon disaster.
The oil rig accident killed 11 workers and spilled millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.
BP has been banned for 16 months from leasing more offshore oil and gas properties and renewing fuel contracts with the US military. But under the new agreement, 25 BP entities and its Houston-based oil production and exploration arm have been cleared to secure new government contracts.
The company said the lifting of the embargo cleared it to enter into new deepwater leases in the Gulf of Mexico.
The deal also means that for five years the company will have to abide by a series of ethics, safety and other requirements, while an independent auditor will also verify its compliance with the deal.
John Minge, chairman and president of BP America, said: ‘After a lengthy negotiation, BP is pleased to have reached this resolution, which we believe to be fair and reasonable.
‘Today’s agreement will allow America’s largest energy investor to again compete for federal contracts and leases.’
Craig Hooks, assistant administrator for EPA’s office of administration and resources management, said: ‘This is a fair agreement that requires BP to improve its practices in order to meet the terms we’ve outlined together.’
BP continues to grapple with the costs of the spill, with annual results last month showing the total charge recognised to date stood at $42.7billion (£26.2billion).
It is appealing against a court ruling over bogus claims on its compensation scheme and asking for an injunction ‘to prevent awards to claimants whose losses are not traceable to the spill’.
Stock watch: BP shares have not recovered since the Deepwater disaster in April 2010
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james,
hawarden,
2 hours ago
bp should pull out of America all together.
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US lifts ban on BP winning government work imposed after Deepwater
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