Thick oil from BP Plc

Louisiana: The first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season is posing an uncertain threat to the Gulf of Mexico, even as efforts to contain the worst oil spill in US history are set to ramp up.

For now, Tropical Storm Alex, which is hitting the western Caribbean with rain and high winds, is not expected to pass close to BP

Tropical Storm Alex headed toward the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday, but while it was not expected to hit the oil spill area, experts warned strong waves and winds could hamper clean-up efforts there.

Sreeram Chaulia

JACKIE CALMES and HELENE COOPER
WASHINGTON

Washington: US President Barack Obama, seeking to counter an image of detached leadership of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, will demand on Wednesday that BP Plc set aside billions of dollars to pay damages from the catastrophe.

Indu Bhan

Abhineet Kumar / Mumbai June 15, 2010, 1:34 IST

Move likely to delay the deployment of idle rigs by Aban Offshore.

The six-month moratorium on deep-water drilling in the Gulf of Mexico is likely to delay the deployment of idle rigs by Aban Offshore and impact the day rates for support vessels that companies such as Great Offshore supply.

Even bad times have their uses sometimes. One of the positive fallouts of the recent oil price rise was its impact on oil exploration. The oil industry has been trying hard for a while to get oil from the deep ocean. But the procedure was expensive, not to speak of the risks involved. Oil prices soared at the end of 2007, and deepwater drilling became a worthwhile exercise.