Thursday, September 9, 2010

BP (NYSE:BP) Well May Have to Wait Till October for Permanent Kill

In a conference call with reporters today, National Incident Commander Thad Allen said the government and BP (NYSE:BP) may have to extend the time to permanently kill the oil well until October.

The delay, if it happens, is the result of taking into consideration new steps to plug the Macondo well.

What is being thrown around is the idea of injecting more cement into the top of the well as part of the final process. The "bottom kill" already entails injecting mud and cement into the lower portion of the well to ensure a permanent plug.

Allen said, “We are in a little bit of a diagnostic phase right now to try to figure out what is the current status of the well.”

If the two-step process is implemented, it could start by September 18, or as late as September 28. The overall process will take about a week, which could bring it into October.

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