U.S. government files civil lawsuit against nine companies for Deepwater Horizon oil spill

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U.S. government files civil lawsuit against nine companies for Deepwater Horizon oil spill

2010-12-16 05:13:43 GMT+7 (ICT)

WASHINGTON, D.C. (BNO NEWS) -- The U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday announced it filed a civil lawsuit against nine companies involved in the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, which created one of the world's largest environmental disasters in history.

The lawsuit asks the court for civil penalties under the Clean Water Act and to declare eight of the defendants liable without limitation under the Oil Pollution Act for all removal costs and damages caused by the oil spill, including damages to natural resources.

The defendants named in the lawsuit are BP Exploration and Production Inc., Anadarko Exploration & Production LP and Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, MOEX Offshore 2007 LLC, Triton Asset Leasing GMBH, Transocean Holdings LLC, Transocean Offshore Deepwater Drilling Inc., Transocean Deepwater Inc., and BP's insurer, QBE Underwriting Ltd./Lloyd’s Syndicate 1036. QBE/Lloyd's, however, can be held liable only up to the amount of insurance policy coverage under the Oil Pollution Act and is not being sued under the Clean Water Act.

"We intend to prove that these defendants are responsible for government removal costs, economic losses, and environmental damages without limitation," said U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. "Even though the spill has been contained, the Department's focus on investigating this disaster and preventing future devastation has not wavered."

Holder said the Justice Department's civil and criminal investigations into the disaster are both ongoing. "Our work to ensure that the American taxpayers are not forced to bear the costs of restoring the gulf area and its economy is moving forward," he added.

The civil lawsuit filed on Wednesday alleged that important safety and operating regulations were violated in the period leading up to the oil spill. This includes the alleged failure to take necessary precautions to keep the Macondo Well under control in the period leading up to the explosion which set off the spill. It also alleges failure to use the best available and safest drilling technology to monitor the well's conditions.

The complaint also includes claims for civil penalties under the Clean Water Act, which prohibits the unauthorized discharge of oil into the nation's waters. It alleges that the defendants named in the lawsuit were in violation of the Act throughout the months that oil was gushing into the Gulf of Mexico.

The April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig - off of Louisiana in the Gulf of Mexico - killed 11 people and injured 17 others. The platform later sank, creating one of the world's largest environmental disasters in history.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2010-12-16

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Strange that Halliburton, who did the cementing, aren't on the list.