Little conceded that BP as rig lessee could have shut down the operation if it was unhappy with Transocean's actions.
BP official pressed at Gulf oil spill hearing
METAIRIE, LA
A panel member on Thursday pressed BP wells manager Ian Little
on whether BP could have pushed rig owner Transocean to do more
maintenance work on the rig's blowout preventer. Panel members
noted a day earlier that industry recommendations call for complete
overhauls of blowout preventers after five years. But a Transocean
official said that while parts were regularly inspected and, when
necessary, repaired or replaced, a complete overhaul wasn't done.
