BP “ahead of schedule” in oil clean-up
BP is aiming to plug its leaking Gulf of Mexico well by 27 July, weeks sooner than forecast, it has been reported,
The oil giant was also preparing a series of backup plans in case its current operations fail, including connecting the leaking well to existing pipelines in two adjacent gas and oil fields, the Journal reported, citing company and government officials.
The 27 July target date is the day the company is due to report second-quarter earnings and will speak to investors, the Wall Street Journal said.
“In a perfect world with no interruptions, it is possible to be ready to stop the well between July 20 and July 27,” the head of BP’s Gulf Coast restoration unit Bob Dudley told the newspaper.
However, Dudley said this “perfect case” is threatened by the hurricane season and is “unlikely”.
BP shares have fallen by half since its well blew out in April, spewing crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico and soiling the shores of every US Gulf Coast state.
But its stock on the New York Stock Exchange closed up almost four per cent on Wednesday, buoyed by relief among investors the company had said it does not plan to issue new equity, and speculation the worst is behind for what they see as an underpriced energy giant.
This was also partly due to progress on the relief well, seen as the best hope for finally stopping the 80-day-old disaster.
The US official overseeing the spill cleanup said it was 15ft (4.6 metres) from the side of the leaking well, although still not expected to be finished before mid-August.
Also on Thursday, the oil drilling industry was set to go head-to-head with the Obama administration in court over the White House effort to suspend deepwater oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico for six months in the wake of the catastrophic well blowout.