$7.8 billion settlement in Gulf of Mexico oil spill
BP has agreed to pay an estimated $7.8 billion to settle a lawsuit over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill of 2010 that left southern shores with blankets of black oil and contaminated water. The blowout of BP’s Macondo well poured as much as 4.9 million barrels of oil into the gulf on April 20, 2010, killing 11 and sinking the Deepwater Horizon oil rig. BP reported it expects to pay the settlement from an escrow account, or trust fund, that holds $20 billion the company set up during the spill to settle individual and business claims without going to court. The settlement includes $2.3 billion to assist in resolving economic loss claims related to the gulf seafood industry, BP reported.
The court will supervise the rest of the money BP will pay, which will be determined by two separate sets of formulas and matrices, one for medical claims and one for economic claims. For the next 21 years, BP agreed to pay for consultations to people with health-related claims and pay $105 million to improve healthcare in gulf communities. BP reports it has already paid $8.1 billion to individuals, businesses, and government entities. They have also spent around $14 billion cleaning up the spill. The settlement provides compensation in “a transparent and expeditious manner under rigorous judicial oversight. It does the greatest amount of good for the greatest number of people,” Stephen J. Herman and James P. Roy, the leading plaintiffs’ negotiators said in a statement.
