By Sue Reisinger, From Corporate Counsel

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill has already cost BP $54.6 billion in legal and other costs, and that number is expected to rise over the next few years. And in its most recent quarterly report, BP took a $10.8 billion charge related to its Gulf oil spill “response” in the second quarter of 2015, according to documents on its website.

The documents, and accompanying information, say $9.8 billion went for state and federal claims arising from the April 2010 spill. Another $460 million charge was for “business economic loss claims not provided for,” while the remainder went for “adjustments to other provisions” and “ongoing costs of the Gulf Coast Restoration Organization.”

There was no separate breakdown for its legal fees, and the company did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment. In February 2014 the company reported it had already spent more than $1 billion on lawyers’ fees. The company retained Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, Kirkland & Ellis and Williams & Connolly for work related to the massive spill’s aftermath.

The bulk of the second quarter claims involve the July 2 agreements BP made with the U.S., five Gulf Coast states and some 400 local governments. The settlement commits BP to pay up to $18.7 billion over the next 18 years.

The settlement does not cover other private claims or private securities litigation, which could go on for years.

While BP claimed “an underlying profit” of $1.3 billion in the quarter—excluding the Gulf spill costs—its overall bottom-line showed a $6.3 billion loss.

FuelFix.com, a daily blog by energy and business reporters at the Houston Chronicle and other Hearst newspapers, reported in June that the ultimate cost of the spill to BP could run $60 billion to $68 billion.

FuelFix quoted Bloomberg Intelligence energy analyst William Hares telling investors, “For BP, these ongoing and upcoming litigation liabilities are also occurring at one of the most challenging periods for the company and the industry in recent memory. Barring a worst-case scenario, BP will continue to exist, though the impact from the litigation will be felt by investors.”

BP has already sold billions of dollars worth of assets, laid off workers, restructured its operations and drastically cut costs as it struggles to regain some financial stability.

The same blog said earlier this week that BP has been readying its defenses against possible takeover efforts. But it noted that the government settlements contained an option that allows the government to speed up payment of at least $12.6 billion in case of a change of control or insolvency at BP – a disincentive for any suitor. BP declined to comment to FuelFix.

But David Berg, a Houston-based lawyer who has negotiated settlements between polluters and municipalities, told the blog, “I don’t know anyone who’d want to buy a company with a $12.6 billion hickey they’d have to pay right away.”

IMAGE: A ship floats amongst a sea of spilled oil in the Gulf of Mexico after the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster.

Photo: Kris Krüg via Wikimedia Commons

For more on this story go to: http://www.corpcounsel.com/id=1202738636155/BPs-Deepwater-Toll-55B-and-Counting#ixzz3nK9bEHXf