NEW ORLEANS (AFP) -- BP won't make a final decision until later Wednesday on whether to proceed with an ambitious "top kill" plan to cap the Gulf of Mexico oil leak, its chief executive said.
"Later on today, I will sit with my team and review the analysis and determine whether or not we should proceed," CEO Tony Hayward told CNN television.
"In the course of today, we will be determining whether or not we should proceed with the top kill operation," he said.
It had been hoped BP would begin the procedure early Wednesday. It involves smothering the leak with heavy drilling fluid then sealing it with concrete, a technique never before tried at such depth.
The top kill has been seen by some experts as the best short term hope of ending the crisis, since most other options for shutting down the oil leak would take weeks or even months to realize.
Disclaimer: I really have no idea what is going on, but this headline and article just hit the wire. I can provide a link, but I don't think I'm allowed to based upon my subscription.
Additional Source corroborating above quote:
HOUSTON (Reuters) – Under intense pressure from the Obama administration, the chief executive of BP Plc said he expects to decide later on Wednesday whether to proceed with a tricky "top kill" procedure to try to contain leaking oil in the Gulf of Mexico.
The massive oil leak is threatening an ecological and economic disaster along the U.S. Gulf coast.
"Later this morning I will review that with the team, and I will take a final decision as to whether or not we should proceed," BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward told the NBC "Today" show on Wednesday.
If he determines it is safe to proceed, the procedure is expected to happen on Wednesday, he said. He added it will take a day or two to determine whether the procedure worked.
Source: Reuters Via Yahoo! News
The Top Kill procedure was originally delayed to Wednesday morning, but it appears as though it has been delayed once again.
BP Live Spillcam
Just to reiterate, I have absolutely no working knowledge of deep sea drilling, spill clean-up, etc.