BP is given a day to meet US demands
THE OBAMA administration ratcheted up the pressure on BP yesterday after Admiral Thad Allen sent a letter to the embattled oil giant demanding that he be notified of every move it makes in responding to the Gulf of Mexico spill disaster.
Allen, who is leading the Gulf operations for the US government, told BP that it has to receive his approval “before any actions are taken on each of the decision points subsequently identified” to deal with the leaking well.
The letter, which was addressed to BP spill boss Bob Dudley, demanded that Allen be notified of “steps and decision points involved, mitigation efforts to be implemented and contingency plans” before the group goes ahead with them.
BP, which hasn’t responded to the letter, said that it will respond in due course.
Allen has set BP a deadline of today to provide him with updated timelines of its response.
The letter is part of a number of recent aggressive moves made by the Obama administration to gain control over the group, after assistant attorney-general, Tony West, wrote to BP earlier this week requiring the company to give the government 30 days notice of any moves that would affect the size and shape of its business, including any asset sales.
A spokesman for BP confirmed the group had received the letter and that it would respond in due course.
BP also sought to distance itself yesterday from a 27 July target date to have the first relief well completely drilled after Dudley said that in a “perfect world with no interruptions, it is possible to be ready to stop the well between 20 and 27 July”.
“It is unlikely to happen by that date. It is more likely that the well will be drilled by mid-August. Our target still remains mid-August,” said a spokesperson for the group.
BP is currently a few hundred feet away from tapping into the leaking Macondo well, with the last steps to complete the drilling expected to take more time, but possible stormy weather could pose a threat.