BP Agrees To Inform US Ahead Of Transactions - Report

7th Jul 2010 03:50

LONDON (AFP)--BP PLC (BP) has agreed to inform the U.S. government of major transactions that might affect the future shape of the company following the Gulf oil spill, a U.K. paper reported Wednesday. The oil giant has bowed to demands to notify the Department of Justice at least 30 days ahead of major financial moves, U.K. newspaper The Times said. The request came in a letter from Tony West, the U.S. assistant attorney general, to Rupert Bondy, BP's general counsel, on June 23, the paper said. It asked BP to inform U.S. justice officials before "any planned or contemplated events that may involve substantial transfers of cash or other corporate assets outside of the ordinary course of business." U.S. authorities should also be told of any "corporate restructuring, reorganization, acquisitions, mergers, joint ventures, sales, divestments or disbursements," it said. BP also agreed to hand over other information to the U.S., including monthly financial statements and details of credit and loan agreements, said The Times. The letter set a deadline of last week for BP to agree to the requests. Fears about the beleaguered oil giant's financial health have been growing, with the U.K. government reportedly preparing a crisis plan in case the company is sunk by the disaster. BP has spent some $3.12 billion in spill-related costs and has promised to pay another $20 billion into an escrow fund to compensate Americans affected by the disaster. The Gulf of Mexico oil spill is the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history. It was triggered by the sinking of the BP-leased Deepwater Horizon rig April 22, two days after an explosion that killed 11 workers. Up to 60,000 barrels of oil a day are believed to be leaking into the Gulf of Mexico, far outpacing the collection efforts of a system that is capturing around 25,000 barrels a day. (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 06, 2010 22:50 ET (02:50 GMT)