OIL SPILL

A day after BP said it would sell $30 billion in assets to pay for its Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the focus shifted to what is for sale, while lawyers prepared to tackle a mountain of claims for damages.

Several U.S. government agencies are preparing a criminal probe of at least three companies involved in the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, though it could take more than a year before any charges are filed, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday.

With BP poised to move on from the Gulf oil spill with a new chief executive, the beleaguered London-based company might look attractive to Middle East sovereign wealth funds after all. It would be a parting legacy from outgoing CEO Tony Hayward if his efforts earlier this month to court the funds in Abu Dhabi and other oil-producing countries were to bear fruit.

Senators postponed a hearing on whether British oil giant BP Plc influenced the release of the Lockerbie bomber, saying on Tuesday key witnesses had stonewalled the investigation by refusing to appear.

The top U.S. official overseeing the response to BP Plc's Gulf of Mexico oil leak said on Tuesday he doesn't expect the company's commitment to cleaning up the spill to be diminished with its change in leadership.

BP Plc's newly named chief executive on Tuesday called the Gulf oil spill a wake-up call for the entire industry as the company tallied up its losses and disclosed two U.S. investigations.

BP Plc said the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Justice Department had launched a probe into market trading connected to the oil giant's Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

BP Plc's newly named chief executive on Tuesday called the Gulf oil spill a wake-up call for the entire industry as the company tallied up its losses and disclosed two U.S. investigations.

BP Plc's ousted chief executive, Tony Hayward, will not testify to a Senate committee examining whether the oil giant influenced the release of the Lockerbie bomber, Senator Robert Menendez said on Tuesday.

BP Plc's newly named chief executive on Tuesday called the Gulf oil spill a wake-up call for the entire industry as the company tallied up its losses and disclosed two U.S. investigations.

BP has said that outgoing chief executive Tony Hayward will not testify at a U.S. Senate hearing examining whether the British oil giant influenced the release of the Lockerbie bomber, the office of Senator Robert Menendez said on Tuesday.

Protesters from environmental group Greenpeace disabled some of BP's 50 petrol stations in central London on Tuesday in protest at the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Oil giant BP Plc launched a plan to repair its battered image in the United States on Tuesday, ditching its gaffe-prone chief executive and promising to slim down by trebling an asset sale target to $30 billion.

BP on Tuesday confirmed that chief executive Tony Hayward will quit and said it would take a charge as a result of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill amounting to $32.2 billion.

Oil steadied near $79 on Tuesday as forecasts see falling crude inventories and rising refined product stocks in the United States, continuing a trend that has helped keep prices in a $10 range for almost two months.

BP Plc could start the final procedure to kill its ruptured oil well in the Gulf of Mexico late next week despite storm-related delays, the top U.S. oil spill official said on Monday.

The man who acquired a solid gold reputation for fixing sticky situations for the U.S. government is facing one of his toughest challenges yet: running BP Plc's $20 billion compensation fund.

BP Plc is expected to install an American troubleshooter as chief executive in the next 24 hours, replacing Tony Hayward, who has come under fire for his handling of the worst oil spill in U.S. history.

BP Plc is expected to install an American troubleshooter as chief executive in the next 24 hours, replacing Tony Hayward, who has come under fire for his handling of the worst oil spill in U.S. history.

Dividend payments by London-listed companies will fall 6.5 percent this year, mainly because BP suspended payouts after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, Capita Registrars Dividend Monitor said.

An e-mail scam featuring someone purporting to be BP Plc's Chief Executive Tony Hayward is targeting victims of the company's massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill, Florida's attorney general said on Thursday.