Matthew Simmons: “We've now killed the Gulf of Mexico” (BP)

Matthew Simmons, founder and chairman emeritus of Simmons & Company International and former energy advisor to President George W. Bush, spoke with Bloomberg Television this afternoon. He said that while the GOM oil leak has been stopped from coming out of the riser, there is another more important leak five to ten miles away caused by the explosion of the blow-out preventer. Mr. Simmons said, “What we don’t know anything about is the open hole which is caused by the drill bit when it tossed the blow-out preventer way out of the hole…and 120,000 minimum of toxic poison has now covered the floor of the Gulf of Mexico. So what they’re talking about is the biggest environmental cover-up ever. And they knew that that well, that riser, would finally deplete. And then they could say it’s over. And unfortunately, we now have killed the Gulf of Mexico.” When speaking about implication for BP plc BP, he said, “When people find out the magnitude of the story, I don’t know if we can technically clean up the Gulf but it would cost at least a trillion dollars.” He added, "I think the Transocean [staff] need Congressional Medals of Hero for this…I am really disgusted. Other than John Hofmeister, the retired president of Shell America, he's the only other person in the industry who I've seen to speak out." Mr. Simmons is putting his money where his mouth is and is shorting the stock, saying, ““You bet I did. Because I thought BP was going to go under. I’ve been saying that for months and months and when I read that 20 of the 24 Wall Street analysts had a ‘buys,’ I said ‘ That’s ridiculous, I’m going to short them.’ I’ve never shorted a stock in my life before.” Learn how to find the best stocks to trade each day in our 70 page E-Book and 90 minute online video for free.