Tuesday 16 January 2018

BP expects to pay $1.7bn in latest Deepwater Horizon charges

BP is expected to pay a $1.7 billion (£1.2bn) charge from its fourth-quarter 2017 profits as part of its payments for the Deepwater Horizon disaster.

The Court Supervised Settlement Programme (CSSP) is now winding down and the cash impact is expected to be spread over a multi-year period.

Cash payments related to the disaster in 2018 are now anticipated to be around $3 billion (£2.2bn), as compared to the company’s previous estimate of just over $2 billion (£1.45bn).

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill killed 11 people in April 2010 and saw 4.2 barrels of oil leak into the Gulf of Mexico.

BP said it will continue to appeal determinations of claims it believes are non-compensable.

Brian Gilvary, BP’s Chief Financial Officer, said: "With the claims facility’s work very nearly done, we now have better visibility into the remaining liability.

"The charge we are taking as a result is fully manageable within our existing financial framework, especially now that we have the company back into balance at $50 (£36.3) per barrel."