US in bid for control of BP
BP last night denied reports that it has agreed to give the US government final say in its business as pressure from the Obama administration continues to heat up.
The deadline for BP?to respond to an aggressive letter by the assistant attorney-general, Tony West, demanding that the oil major provide 30 days notice before “any planned or contemplated events that may involve transfers of cash or other corporate assets outside of its ordinary course of business”, passed last week.
But BP rejected claims that it was caving in to the demands made by the Department of Justice (DoJ), which also included giving monthly updates to the government on the financial health of the company.
It is understood that the DoJ sent similar letters to other parties involved in the Deepwater Horizon disaster.
The news comes as BP is seeking almost $400m (£263m) from Anadarko Petroleum and Mitsui as the embattled oil major turns up the heat on its Macondo well partners to pay for their share of the clean-up.
Anadarko, which owns 25 per cent of the leaking Gulf of Mexico well, has been sent a bill for $272m, while BP has asked Mitsui to pay $111m for its 10 per cent stake. A spokesperson from BP said: “Other parties may be responsible for the costs and liabilities. We expect those parties to live up to their obligations.”
Anadarko, which earlier refused to pay, said that it is “currently reviewing and assessing its contractual remedies”. It is expected that BP will know this week whether its well partners will pay.