The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is a catastrophe that needs serious attention.
The British oil company said that it assumes “full responsibility”. The British oil company BP, operator of the platform that sank off the Gulf of Mexico, pledged on Friday to clean the coasts and to compensate victims. In 1989, after the ship had dumped 40.9 million gallons of oil off Alaska, Exxon had paid $ 4.3 billion in cleanup and legal fees.
BP is spending $ 6 million per day. In fact, it has enforced significant means like 32 boats, 5 helicopters and 1,000 people. This is only the beginning. The rating agency Fitch Ratings believes that the cleanup could cost between 2 and 3 billion dollars. Nevertheless, “we must remember that the insurance would probably cover the majority of these costs.” The Exxon Valdez is the perfect example. The company had spent $ 2 billion worth of cleanup but after a long legal battle against the insurers, it had managed to obtain a refund of most of its costs through insurance.
In theory, the law Oil Pollution Act of 1990 provides a fine of $ 3,000 per barrel spilled in nature. Knowing that 5000 barrels of oil a day flowing, there will be more BP than do the calculation once the leak stopped. Except in practice, the sentence seems negotiable … Exxon Mobil had originally been fined 150 million dollars, a record for any damage to the environment. But the figure was eventually reduced to 25 million after that Exxon had been cooperative in terms of cleaning and compensation of victims.
BP has continued since Wednesday evening for “negligence” and “pollution” by two ranchers who claim Louisiana shrimp 5 million in damages.
The wreck could influence the lasting image of the BP brand. Millward Brown valued at 17.3 billion, BP had successfully entered the top 100 strongest brands in 2009 thanks to a green image, according to the agency report. But this picture may be deeply tarnished if the company fails to limit the damage it has caused. Since the explosion, its stock has tumbled 13%, according to The Wall Street Journal, which represents about 25 billion dollars.