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BP has estimated civil fines of around US$3.5-billion related to the spill, although maximum possible fines could top US$20-billion if gross negligence was established on the part of BP or its contractors.

BP has made no provision for punitive damages because it says there is no legal basis for them. Barbier has limited the cases in which claims for punitive damages can be brought.

Thursday’s decision means Transocean’s potential liability over the April 20, 2010 Deepwater Horizon drilling rig explosion that caused 11 deaths, was “materially diminished” analysts at UBS said in a research note.

BP had previously sought to shift the whole cost of the disaster, currently estimated at around $42 billion, onto Transocean.

Shares of Transocean rose 8.2 percent at 0856 GMT, while BP shares fell 1.7 percent.

RESPONSIBILITY

Transocean owned the rig, while BP owned a majority of the Macondo well whose blowout led to the spill.

BP has said it would like to reach an out of court settlement with Transocean but Barbier’s ruling makes its negotiating position weaker.

Both sides claimed victory over the ruling, which Transocean spokesman Lou Colasuonno said “discredits BP’s ongoing attempts to evade both its contractual and financial obligations.”

BP said the decision “holds Transocean financially responsible for any punitive damages, fines and penalties flowing from its own conduct.

“As we have said from the beginning, Transocean cannot avoid its responsibility for this accident,” spokesman Daren Beaudo said in an emailed statement.