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A court hearing is set for BP to justify why it has refused to pay more than $130 million in fees to the administrator of its multi-billion dollar settlement with US Gulf Coast businesses and residents after the company's 2010 oil spill.
In a letter dated Monday, the British oil giant's claims official Maria Travis wrote that the settlement program has been plagued by poor productivity and excessive costs.
A US magistrate scheduled Wednesday's hearing in New Orleans on whether BP should be ordered to fund the administrator's proposed third-quarter budget.
The spill was the worst offshore oil disaster in US history.
BP spokesman Geoff Morrell in an emailed statement said that under the settlement agreement, the claims administrator's budget is subject to BP's "reasonable approval.
