The U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on Wednesday that it has
temporarily suspended BP Exploration and Production, Inc., BP PLC and affiliated
companies (BP) from new contracts with the federal government. This includes
oil development leases in a Gulf as well as contracts with the Department of
Defense.
The BP
suspension will temporarily prevent the company and from getting new federal
government contracts, grants or other covered transactions until the company
can demonstrate to the EPA that it meets Federal business standards. The
suspension does not affect existing agreements and contracts BP has with the
government. In 2011 BP was the largest fuel supplier to the U.S. Department of
Defense and is likely to be the largest supplier in 2012, and 2013. This past
September (2012) a Division of BP products of North America Inc., was awarded a
contract for fuel with a maximum $816 million, and in May 2012 BP West Coast
Products, L.L.C., doing business as Arco, La Palma, Calif., was awarded a contract
with a maximum $782 million for fuel. So, for the short term, BP was barred
from the Gulf oil lease auction and needs to demonstrate and document good
behavior and environmental practices in fulfillment of their existing
contracts.
On November 15,
2012, BP agreed to plead guilty to eleven counts of Misconduct or Neglect of
Ship Officers, one count of Obstruction of Congress, one misdemeanor count of a
violation of the Clean Water Act, and one misdemeanor count of a violation of
the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, all arising from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon
disaster that killed 11 people and caused the largest oil spill and EPA is
calling in their press release the largest environmental disaster in U.S.
history. BP agreed to pay $4.5 billion, including a record $1.26 billion
criminal fine, to end all criminal charges and resolve securities claims
against them. Separate from the corporate manslaughter charges, a federal grand
jury has indicted two BP supervisors who were on board the Deepwater Horizon with
manslaughter and involuntary
manslaughter for each of the 11 men killed in the blast, as well as a criminal
violation of the clean water act.
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