BP Reaches Deal for Gulf Oil Spill Lawsuits

 　　British Petroleum¹ has announced it has reached a multi-billion-dollar agreement with fishermen and other plaintiffs who sued over the 2010 Gulf² of Mexico oil spill off the U.S. coast.

　　BP says the $7.8 billion deal represents a partial settlement in the case and expects the money to come from the $20 billion compensation fund that it previously³ set up.

　　The U.S. government case involving BP has not yet been resolved.

　　U.S. Judge Carl Barbier said the agreement announced late Friday now goes to the court for approval.  He says the trial that had been scheduled for Monday has been postponed⁴ for a second time.  No new date has been announced.

　　The case was triggered by the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of the southern state of Louisiana in April of 2010.

　　The explosion killed 11 workers and sent millions of gallons of oil spewing across the multi-state Gulf region, killing⁵ wildlife and destroying livelihoods⁶.

　　The U.S. government is pursuing a separate case focusing on liability for the explosion.  Last September a team of Coast Guard officials and federal regulators issued a report that concluded BP bears ultimate responsibility for the spill.

　　The report said BP violated federal regulations, ignored crucial warnings and made bad decisions when trying to cement the leaking well about 1.5 kilometers beneath the Gulf of Mexico.

1 petroleum   

n.原油，石油

参考例句：

• The Government of Iran advanced the price of petroleum last week.上星期伊朗政府提高了石油价格。
• The purpose of oil refinery is to refine crude petroleum.炼油厂的主要工作是提炼原油。

2 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

3 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

4 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

5 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

6 livelihoods   

生计，谋生之道( livelihood的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• First came the earliest individualistic pioneers who depended on hunting and fishing for their livelihoods. 走在最前面的是早期的个人主义先驱者，他们靠狩猎捕鱼为生。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• With little influence over policies, their traditional livelihoods are threatened. 因为马赛族人对政策的影响力太小，他们的传统生计受到了威胁。