BP catching 'less than half' of oil from spill
BP may be catching less than half the oil spilling into the Gulf of Mexico, according to new estimates.
The firm claims the cap placed on the broken well is capturing between 15,000 and 16,000 barrels a day and has a maximum capacity of 18,000 — but scientists have doubled their estimate of the leak size to 40,000 barrels a day.
The company hopes to start operating a second ‘riser’ pipeline in addition to the lower marine riser package (LMRP) containment cap early this week. However, this will only be able to capture a maximum of 10,000 barrels a day.
Plans are underway to place a sealing cap on the well and install two free-standing risers, each capturing up to 25,000 barrels a day. However, the first of these will not be in operation until 1 July.
The two relief wells currently being drilled in order to permanently stop the leak will not be finished until August.
One Gulf drilling expert has warned that, in a worst-case scenario, it may take until Christmas to contain the leak fully.
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