BP, Transocean Botched Safety Tests, Expert Witness Says
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BP Plc and Transocean Ltd. officials on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig botched safety tests the night it blew up and sent oil spilling into the Gulf of Mexico, an expert on drilling told a judge.
The rig’s crew misinterpreted results of negative pressure tests done April 20, 2010, that showed the Macondo well was unstable, Richard Heenan, the oil-drilling expert, testified in a trial over spill claims. The U.S. government contends the botched test led to the blast, which killed 11 workers and sent more than 4 million barrels of oil into the Gulf.