BP Plc (BP)

[Timothy Smith]

The $18.7B settlement agreement between the U.S. government, five states and BP over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill will be filed today, giving the public the first look at the settlement announced in July.

Today's filing will be followed by a 60-day public comment period, the next step before final court approval.

Terms outlined when the proposed settlement was announced call for BP to pay $5.5B in Clean Water Act penalties, $7.1B to fix natural resource damage, and $5B for the states to settle economic and other claims.