BP Deepwater Horizon Settlement Amount Is In, And It's Enormous

Shares of BP Plc BP are spiking following the announcement of an $18.7 billion settlement by BP that accounts for all state and federal claims against the oil giant relating to its 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. According to federal authorities, the agreement is the largest U.S. government corporate settlement in history.

Details
The $18.7 billion will be paid out by BP over a span of 18 years. The $18.7 billion pales in comparison to the more than $40 billion that BP has already paid out in legal fees and cleanup efforts relating to the spill. The oil giant and its shareholders are likely anxious to move on from the disaster, which has severely damaged BP’s reputation.

The spill leaked millions of barrels of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico, affecting the ecology of hundreds of miles of sensitive shoreline and killing 11 workers.

Payouts
The $18.7 billion settlement will include payouts to the federal government, the states of Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas and 400 local government entities. Part of the settlement includes a $5.5 billion federal fine (payable over 15 years) for violation of the U.S. Clean Water Act.

BP plans to make payments of about $1.1 billion per year on the settlement for the majority of the payment period.

Share price reacts
Overall, BP’s total price tag for the disaster now stands at $53.8 billion, more than the company’s total profits over the past three years. BP’s share price is higher by 4.7 percent in early trading on Thursday following the news.

However, while the stocks of rivals ExxonMobil Corp XOM, Chevron Corp CVX and ConocoPhillips COP have all climbed by more than 20 percent since the beginning of 2010, BP’s stock remains down more than 30 percent during that time.