BP warned of rig fault ten years ago

[FarCenter]

May 2, 2010

BP faces fresh questions over the cause of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill after it emerged that problems with the type of equipment that led to the disaster were first reported a decade ago.

In June 2000, the oil giant issued a "notice of default" to Transocean, the operator of the rig that blew up last month. The dispute was over problems with a blowout preventer, a set of iron slabs that should close out-of-control wells. It failed on the Gulf of Mexico rig, triggering the explosion and oil spill.

Transocean acknowledged at the time that the preventer did "not work exactly right". The rig in question, the Discover Enterprise, was unable to operate for extended periods while the problem was fixed.

The preventer was made by Hydril, now owned by GE's oil and gas arm, and Cameron International, a Houston company. Cameron also made the preventer on the Deepwater Horizon, the rig that exploded. Its preventer was fitted at about the same time BP was complaining of problems with its sister vessel.

<SNIP>http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/natural_resources/article7114087.ece

[Fridays Child]

1. So, who to hold accountable?

BP?
Transocean?
Hydril?
Cameron International?
Halliburton?
Persons and/or entities to be named?

[Ruby the Liberal]

2. Yes

[HarveyDarkey]

3. All of the above

[Zoeisright]

5. Plus Bush and Cheney.

That asshole Cheney met with BP and other petroleum polluters in 2001 in his secret energy meetings.

[HarveyDarkey]

6. They need added to the list also

right after their trials in the Hague

That is in the works, isn't it?

[FarCenter]

4. British Petroleum, Anadarko, and Mitsui are the well owners

So they are responsible for the damages. They sue their suppliers and/or operators, such as Halliburton for a defective cementing job and Cameron International for a failed blow out preventer.

[MadMaddie]

7. You forgot "Cheney"!!

[spanone]

8. then bu$h* took office and all their troubles seemed so far away