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Oil prices hold firm near $76 mark as BP stops Gulf oil leak
Published on July 16, 2010 by oilprices · No CommentsCrude oil prices open trading on Friday slightly lower but firm around the $76 mark as latest news from the Gulf of Mexico suggests BP has stopped the oil leak with it’s new capping device.
US Light crude oil futures was trading at $76.48 at 08.00, GMT on the NYMEX, while in London, Brent crude oil futures for September 2010 delivery was at $75.90, 08.00 GMT on the ICE Futures Exchange.
“It seems there’s no big news in Asia today. Traders are closing positions ahead of the weekend,” Newedge Japan trader Masaki Suematsu said.
But there is some big news coming out of the US.
After 85 days and up to 184 million gallons, BP finally gained control over one of America’s biggest environmental catastrophes Thursday by placing a carefully fitted cap over a runaway geyser that has been gushing crude into the Gulf of Mexico since early April 20th 2010.
The drama that unfolded quietly in the darkness of deep water Thursday was a combination of trial, error, technology and luck. It came after weeks of repeated attempts to stop the oil leak.
Yesterday’s success followed days of uncertainty about how the sealing cap would perform, and whether it could stop the oil without blowing a new hole in the oil well.
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