Congress: BP Took 'Shortcuts' to Save Money

Congressional investigators have sent a letter to Tony Hayward demanding he address some “serious questions about the decisions made by BP in the days and hours before the explosion on the Deepwater Horizon.” The letter, which comes from Henry Waxman and other House Energy Committee Democrats, alleges that BP continually chose to sacrifice safety in the name of cutting costs, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The letter cites an email in which a BP engineer calls the project a “nightmare well which has everyone all over the place.” It also cites evidence that delays at the Macondo well “created pressure to take shortcuts to speed finishing the well.” BP has responded by asking the committee to raise its questions when Hayward testifies before it on Thursday. (More British Petroleum stories.)