BP turns to next chapter in Gulf oil spill saga

Now that a $4 billion plea deal approved Tuesday has resolved BP’s criminal liability for the massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster that occurred nearly three years ago, the company will turn its focus to a trial that could potentially cost it billions of dollars more in civil penalties. What the plea deal approved by U.S. District Judge Sarah Vance doesn’t resolve is the federal government’s civil claims against BP. A trial scheduled to start Feb. 25 is designed to identify the causes of BP’s well blowout, which triggered the deadly rig explosion on April 20, 2010, and the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that ensued for months. The first phase of the trial also is designed to assign percentages of blame to BP and its partners in the ill-fated drilling project. BP and the Justice Department have engaged in settlement talks that could resolve the civil claims against BP by the federal government and Gulf Coast states before trial. Vance notes that the company already has racked up more than $24 billion in spill-related expenses and has estimated it will pay a total of $42 billion to fully resolve its liability for the disaster in the Gulf. The Associated Press has more details in the full story here.