墨西哥湾漏油事故各方赔偿责任划分分析及启示

Analysis on the allocation and assumption of damages liabilities resulted from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill among related responsible parties

美国墨西哥湾漏油事故发生后,相关各方赔偿责任的分担和转移是继堵漏清污工作之后又一个备受关注的焦点。就BP集团内部而言,应尽可能让直接从事油气开发的美国子公司承担责任,而且避免上市公司被直接追索或被"刺破公司面纱";就BP与合作伙伴之间的责任分担而言,由于很难证明BP存在故意或重大过失,非作业者很可能按比例分摊BP的清污和赔偿支出,这可能对今后联合作业协议的谈判产生深远影响,无论是作业者还是非作业者都将在免责条款上格外谨慎;就油气开发者与承包商和服务商而言,行业惯例和传统免责条款很难改变,但可在法律允许范围内以合约方式约定免责问题;对保险人和油气开发者而言,保险人将承担此次漏油事故的部分损失,这将导致保费升高,油气公司应增加互保等替代手段。漏油事故发生后,股东、受害者团体和政府可以通过各种方式寻求损害补偿,但社会大众和生态环境受到的损害是无法得到有效补偿的。

It is a key issue for the related responsible parties to allocate and transfer the damages resulted from the Macondo blowout.As to the BP group,it is rational to attribute the liabilities to its operating company incorporated in USA instead of the parent company.Regarding BP and its participating partners,since it is hard to prove BP's gross negligence or willful misconduct during the incident,Anadarko and MOEX are likely to allocate BP's expenditures proportionate to their respective working interest in Block 252.Therefore,it is predictable that both operators and non-operators will be more prudent when negotiating the indemnity clauses in the JOA.For the oil company and its contractor,it is hard to change the general practice and traditional indemnity clauses,but it is still permissible to negotiate within the limit of the law.With regards to the insurer and oil developers,the insurance companies will shoulder a portion of losses arising out of the accident,which will lead to the rise of the insurance premium and more inclination to mutual insurance and other alternatives.Besides,there are derivative actions,class actions and criminal investigation against BP or its management.The public and the environment have suffered irreparable harm from this ecological disaster.