26/07/2013 10:01
Halliburton to plead guilty to destroying Gulf evidence
US company Halliburton will plead guilty to destroying evidence relating to the 2010 Gulf Of Mexico oil spill, BBC reported.
The plea agreement, which is subject to court approval, means Halliburton will have to pay the maximum possible fine.
The spill occurred at BP's Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico and was the worst in US history.
BP had accused Houston-based Halliburton, its contractor, of destroying evidence and asked it to pay for all damages.
The major oil spill three years ago followed a blast at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig that killed 11 workers.
"A Halliburton subsidiary has agreed to plead guilty to one misdemeanour violation associated with the deletion of records created after the Macondo well incident, to pay the statutory maximum fine of $200,000 and to accept a term of three years probation," the company said in a statement.
Halliburton is the third of three major companies at the heart of the oil spill to admit criminal wrongdoing. Oil giant BP and rig operator Transocean have already pleaded guilty to charges related to the disaster.