Outgoing BP boss to face MPs over spill
BP’S outgoing chief executive, Tony Hayward, will be grilled by MPs next week over the UK implications of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Hayward is to appear in front of the House of Commons energy and climate change select committee next Wednesday as the accident has raised concerns globally about the dangers of drilling in ever-deeper waters.
North Sea producers are fighting to convince the British government that the UK does not need a moratorium on drilling, like the one imposed in the US by President Barack Obama, pending a review of the cause of the disaster.
Norway has halted new offshore projects until the causes of the rig blast that led to the BP oil spill are known.
Hayward will be accompanied by BP’s North Sea boss Bernard Looney and Mark Bly, BP’s head of safety.
Three days ago, Bly presented BP’s own internal report into the accident – which was the largest oil spill in the US.
The document laid much of the blame for the accident on BP’s contractors, driller Transocean and Halliburton, the company which cemented the well.
The companies rejected the accusations.
Hayward will to be replaced next month by Bob Dudley, who is currently leading the BP cleanup effort in the Gulf.