An oil sheen in the Gulf of Mexico is likely coming from the wreckage of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, not the capped BP Macondo well, the US Coast Guard said Tuesday.
The Coast Guard said Tuesday it has issued a "Notice of Federal Interest" to rig owner Transocean, indicating the "possibility of a release from the riser pipe or other debris on the ocean floor from the April 20, 2010, Deepwater Horizon incident."
The Coast Guard said that video footage from remotely operated vehicles has shown that the sheen is not the result of oil leaking from the Macondo well, which is located in Mississippi Canyon Block 252.
The notice is a legal step that informs a company that it may be named a responsible party that is financially responsible for debris removal and costs resulting from an oil spill or accident.
"This is part of the process we take whenever there is an oil sighting that cannot be immediately attributed to a specific source," Capt. Jonathan Burton, commanding officer of Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Morgan City said in a statement. "We will actively work with Transocean to discuss options to determine whether or not the wreckage is the cause."
If oil is leaking from the riser, it is BP's responsibility, Transocean said.
"If a volume of oil has remained in the riser, there is no question that it is oil from BP's Macondo well," Lou Colasuonno, a spokesman for Transocean, said in a statement. "As owner and operator, BP is the responsible party for all fluids that emanated from the Macondo well head, and BP has repeatedly acknowledged that responsibility. Transocean has accepted responsible party status for rig fluids, such as diesel fuel, consistent with the law. We take this very seriously, and we are committed to working with BP, the Coast Guard, and other parties to investigate these reports."
