"HOUSTON — Three years after its disastrous oil rig accident in the Gulf of Mexico, BP has managed to strengthen its finances by divesting itself of less profitable operations, ramping up new oil production in the North Sea and Angola and reducing its exposure to volatile investments in Russia."
"But one wild card continues to menace the company: BP’s bill to compensate thousands of Gulf spill claimants is spiraling beyond what it expected and could take billions of dollars out of its future earnings.
In an effort to limit its exposure, BP has told a federal appeals court that a claims administrator misinterpreted the terms of a multibillion-dollar settlement reached last year arising out of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon rig explosion and oil spill that took 11 lives and soiled Gulf beaches. A decision by the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans is expected within the next few weeks."
Clifford Krauss and Stanley Reed report for the New York Times July 11, 2013.
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