Deepwater Horizon oil spill and payments to a trust fund had cost the company $42.2 billion. In September 2014, a U.S. District Court judge ruled that BP was primarily responsible for the oil spill because of its gross negligence and reckless conduct. In July 2015, BP agreed to pay $18.7 billion in fines, the largest corporate settlement in U.S. history. How the misuse of categorical exclusion for National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance relates to this spill is described in Regulatory Capture. The "Deepwater Horizon" was a 10-year-old semi-submersible, mobile, floating, dynamically positioned drilling rig that could operate in waters up to deep. Built
Montara oil spill 1 November. The West Triton jackup drilling rig arrived at the Montara Field in an attempt to plug the oil leak on 11 September 2009. Oil and gas producer, Woodside Petroleum Ltd offered to assist PTTEPAA in cleaning up the oil spill with the use of a rig closer to the spill site. However, PTTEPAA rejected the Woodside offer on the basis of "safety reasons". The Woodside rig was a semisubmersible drilling rig and, as it floats on the sea surface, was not deemed as a suitable platform for the relief well. A jackup rig was required because it could