World
BP capturing oil from Gulf gusher, Obama slams firm
(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-06-05 10:35
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US President Barack Obama (2nd L) walks with fisherman Chris Camardelle (L), National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen (2nd R) and Grand Isle mayor David Camardelle alongside a fishing boat in Grand Isle, Louisiana, June 4, 2010. [Agencies] |
The US Coast Guard said the containment cap placed atop the gusher a mile (1.6 km) beneath the Gulf's surface was collecting about 1,000 barrels a day. That amounts to just over 5 percent of the 19,000 barrels per day the US government has estimated could be gushing from the well.
BP Chief Operating Officer Doug Suttles told US television networks that the containment cap "should work" by capturing upward of 90 percent of the gushing crude.
US officials cautioned against being too optimistic, though Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen told reporters the volume of captured oil should increase as BP closes vents on the containment apparatus to trap more of the discharge.
BP does not expect to be able to fully halt the oil flow until August, when two relief wells are to be completed.
In the meantime, Hayward vowed BP will "stand by our obligations."
"We will halt this spill and put right the damage that has been done," he said.
BP's share price, which has fallen sharply since the beginning of the crisis, gyrated in London and New York. Standard & Poor's cut BP's credit rating to AA-minus from AA, following the example of two other rating agencies on Thursday.
The cost of credit default swaps insuring the debt of companies affected in the oil spill also fell on Friday. BP's debt protection costs fell 27 basis points to 218 basis points, or US$218,000 per year for five years to insure $10 million in debt, according to Markit Intraday.
But analyst Alan Sinclair of Seymour Pierce said, "My take on the underlying message is that the dividend is safe ..."
