BP Oil Spill Trial Postponed To Allow Settlement Talks
By Ria Novosti
A trial to determine how much BP owes for the worst oil spill ever in the U.S. was adjourned by one week to allow more settlement talks between the oil company and plaintiffs’ lawyers.
The civil trial in New Orleans was originally scheduled for Monday, but BP and the group of attorneys known as the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee (PSC) announced in a joint statement late on Sunday the trial will be delayed “to allow BP and the PSC more time to continue settlement discussions and attempt to reach an agreement.”
“BP and the PSC are working to reach agreement to fairly compensate people and businesses affected by the Deepwater Horizon accident and oil spill,” the statement reads. “There can be no assurance that these discussions will lead to a settlement agreement.”
British Petroleum’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded on April 20, 2010, and sank two days later after burning for 36 hours in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana. The blast claimed the lives of 11 people. An oil spill ensued, damaging Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi.
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill is the largest oil spill in U.S. history, surpassing the 1989 wreck of the Exxon Valdez oil tanker, which released 260,000 barrels of crude oil. It also turned out to be the largest environmental disaster in U.S. history.
More than 5 million barrels of crude oil were leaked in the Gulf of Mexico, polluting over 1,100 miles of coastline.
