BP restarts work to kill Gulf oil well as Bonnie dissipates

BP restarts work today to permanently plug and kill the Gulf oil well after tropical storm Bonnie dissipates and the well pressure is holding up to general expectations.

BP continues to monitor pressure inside the well and watch for any leaks that could erupt into a new gusher.

BP Well Pressure Holding Up

Pressure at the top of the well rose to 6,914 pounds per square inch, BP said in a statement today, suggesting that there are no leaks or problems with the current temporary cap.

Macondo remained plugged during the evacuation with a cap BP installed on July 15th to temporarily stop the gusher.

Vessels equipped with heavy machines needed to plug the well have returned to the Gulf as well as dozens of others that were evacuated Friday due to the threat of he Tropical Depression Bonnie are schedule to return within 24 hours.

BP Earnings Receive a Boost from Higher Oil Prices

Meanwhile, BP’s second quarter earnings, whose quarterly revenue was probably about 20 times higher than the costs to date of the Gulf oil spill. BP is expected to report Tuesday that its second quarter earnings per share rose about 48%, thanks in part to oil prices that were about 40% higher than in 2009.

Revenue is estimated to have jumped 28% from a year earlier to $72.6 billion, according to the average estimate of analysts in a Reuters poll.

Tags:  bonnie, BP, bp oil spill, gulf, kill, oil, plug, spill, storm, well