AT A GLANCE: BP Prepares Attempt To Cap Gulf Oil Spill

13th Jul 2010 12:49

THE LATEST: BP PLC (BP) will attempt for the first time Tuesday to capture all of the oil leaking from the Macondo well into the Gulf of Mexico. On Monday the company said it had successfully installed a new cap with a much tighter seal on the well and will perform up to 48 hours of tests to check its integrity. If those tests succeed, BP could start to suck up all the oil to ships waiting at the surface. MARKET REACTION: BP has struck a cautious tone about the chance of success for its latest measure, but the market has reacted positively. BP shares rose almost 3% Tuesday morning to 410 pence, on the back of a 9% rise Monday. BP shares are now 35% above their low point of 303 pence on June 29. Shares have also been boosted by reports that BP may be close to boosting its cash reserves by selling around $10 billion of assets and rumors that it could see a takeover approach. WHAT'S NEXT: The cap on the well is only a temporary fix that would not function if another hurricane were to hit the Gulf of Mexico. BP says it is making good progress with the only permanent fix to the oil leak--two relief wells the company has been drilling since early May, the first of which should hit its target within a few weeks. BP'S FUTURE: BP's second quarter results announcement on July 27 looks like the moment when the company tries to demonstrate that it has the financial strength to remain as an independent entity. BP may confirm reports that it has been building up a sizeable cash cushion to handle the huge spill costs--adding around $9 billion in credit lines from a number of banks on top of savings made by suspending dividends and cutting capital expenditure. BP is also looking at selling at least $10 billion in assets, and reports say the company wants to be able to offer concrete details of asset deals by the end of July. -By James Herron, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 207-842-9317, [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 13, 2010 07:49 ET (11:49 GMT)