- Greece Pours $22.6 Billion Into Its Four Biggest Banks
- US Markets Will Be Watching Europe—And Jobs Report
- China's Economic Rebalancing Only Geographical
- Spain's Debt Costs Near Danger Level: Is Bailout Next?
- India's Tumbling Rupee Roils Convertible Bond Market
- Samsung Galaxy S3 Gets Head Start on iPhone
- Greek Contagion Could Drag Euro Below $1.19: Charts
- Japan's Marubeni Nears $5 Billion-Plus Gavilon Deal
- European Companies Plan for Greek Unrest and Euro Exit
- A New Look at the ‘New Poor’
- Six Pack: Beer Buzz of the Week
- Greek Exit Could Trigger 50% Fall in Euro Stocks: Analyst
- Under Pressure, FHA Skews to Wealthier Home Buyers
- Big Stock Upside for Hudson City Deal: Analyst
- 5 High-Yield Stocks Ready to Boost Dividends
- Yoshikami: Four Things You Need to Know About Gold Now
- Steinbock: The Euro Zone Endgame Begins
- Option Bulls Take Another Shot on Idenix
MOST SHARED
- China Rebalances Economy by Shifting Focus Inland
- China Bank Loans Pick Up After Infrastructure Push
- Greece to Leave Euro Zone on June 18: Wealth Manager
- Samsung Galaxy S3 Gets Head Start on iPhone
- Panasonic to Slash Up to 4,000 Jobs; Shares Rise
- Spain's Borrowing Costs Near Danger Level: Bailout Next?
- Greece Pours $22.6 Billion Into Four Biggest Banks
- Crude Prices Stay Firm as US Markets Reopen
- PTT Looks to Tap East African Gas via Cove Energy Bid
- European Firms Plan for Greek Unrest and Euro Exit
MOST POPULAR
HOT ON FACEBOOK
BP Begins Test on Well Cap, May Shut Flow Entirely
Text Size 
BP started shutting off the flow of oil through a new cap on its gushing Gulf of Mexico oil well Wednesday, possibly coming within hours of stopping the gusher for the first time since April.
 |
Source: BP BP uses a robotic arm in an attempt to cap the well. |
At that point, what BP calls the official test of the well's capabilities begin, Wells said. The company will be monitoring pressure inside the device, in part to make sure no new leaks develop. They will review at six hour intervals over a 48-hour period whether the new cap works as planned.
National Incident Commander Thad Allen said that after the test, all the valves will be reopened and BP and federal officials will decide whether to close off the well again or keep it open, with the oil that pours out again being collected by vessels floating on the surface of the Gulf.
Allen said at a separate news conference in New Orleans that the decision to go ahead with testing came after a 24-hour delay prompted by an "overabundance of caution" about the effect the pressure could have on the leaking well.
"This has been a substantial impact on our environment, this has been a substantial impact on the Gulf Coast, the people, the culture," Allen said. "What we didn't want to do is compound that problem by making an irreversible mistake."
Federal officials were concerned that the pressure could further damage the well, including below the seafloor. A mapping of the seafloor around the well allayed those fears, Allen said.
Scientists will be closely monitoring the pressure inside the well during the test. Higher pressures are good; they indicate there is one leak. But if pressure fails to rise above 6,000 pounds per square inch, that could mean there are more leaks deeper in the well.
Once all the openings in the cap are shut off, it will be the first time no oil has flowed into the Gulf since an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon on April 20 that killed 11 workers and began what has become one of the worst environmental disasters in U.S. history.
BP shares [BP Loading... ()] lost almost 2 percent of their value in New York Wednesday after recouping some of their oil spill losses earlier this week.
- Critical elections are scheduled for Greece in June. Here are some of the players and their roles.
- Our financial system is still not designed to meet the needs of poor families, says this author.
- Statistics show there aren’t many women billionaires compared to their male counterparts. Why?
- Click to see various forms of funding and what entrepreneurs have used to build successful companies.
- Here are some of the most expensive hotels in the world to book. And we mean expen$$ive.
- Always drink responsibly and when you do, try one of these more unusual and tasty drinks. Cheers!
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes
