BP sues US over ban on federal contracts after Gulf oil disaster
OIL GIANT BP is suing the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to try to overturn a ban on it gaining new US government contracts.
The FTSE 100-listed firm was temporarily suspended from bidding on new federal contracts – including lucrative military fuel supply deals – last November after pleading guilty to its role in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
The EPA had said that BP displayed a lack of business integrity in its role in the disaster, which left 11 people dead and sent millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. In a filing to a court in the Southern District of Texas on Monday, BP said that the EPA was abusing its discretion and asked the court to rule that the ban is illegal and lift it immediately.
“We believe that the EPA’s action here is inappropriate and unjustified as a matter of law and policy, and we are pursuing our right to seek relief in federal court,” a BP spokesperson told City A.M. in a statement “At the same time, we remain open to a reasonable settlement with the EPA.”
BP secured over $1bn worth of contracts with the US military prior to the ban.