What is the Cost of the BP Oil Spill?

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIya1RY9sFw The recent BP (BP) oil spill at a Transocean (RIG) oil rig run by Halliburton (HAL) is going to cost an ocean of money. The current estimated spill total is 4.2 million gallons of oil (USO) which equals $357 million in crude alone.

Now come the real costs:

• $1.5 billion in insurance claims.
• $6 million a day to contain the spill and secure the well.
• $100 million in relief drilling.
• $100 million for the lost deep water oil rig.
• A federal class-action lawsuit was filed on behalf of two commercial shrimpers from Louisiana. The suit is for $5 million in compensatory damages plus an unspecified amount of punitive damages against Transocean, BP, Halliburton Energy Services Inc. and Cameron International Corp (CAM). Expect many more of these.
• 17 injured workers.
• 11 missing workers.
• Help from the military.
• Dead or damaged sea life.

Although I am not completely opposed to oil as energy, this is another good reason to keep focusing on clean tech (PBW) and solar (TAN).