BP to fight government's 'excessive' demands over Deepwater oil spill
Source: The Guardian
BP to fight government's 'excessive' demands over Deepwater oil spill
Suzanne Goldenberg US environment correspondent
The Guardian, Tuesday 19 February 2013 18.17 GMT
BP has announced that it will square off against the federal government in court next week to fight "excessive" claims arising from the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil disaster.
In a combative statement, the oil giant said it had been open to a settlement in the civil trial, set to start on Monday in a federal court in New Orleans. But it had failed to reach a deal with federal government lawyers.
The trial could potentially result in $21bn (£13.6bn) in civil damages for BP, but the company said on Tuesday it would rather take its chances in court than continue negotiations with federal government lawyers.
"Faced with demands that are excessive and not based on reality or the merits of the case, we are going to trial," said Rupert Bondy, the BP's general counsel, said in a statement.
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Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2013/feb/19/bp-fight-excessive-demands-deepwater
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