BP says cost of dealing with Gulf of Mexico oil spill reaches $3.5 billion

BP says oil spill costs climb to $3.5 billion

LONDON — BP PLC said Monday that the cost of dealing with the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has risen to $3.5 billion.

The oil company said this includes nearly $165 million paid to settle individual claims. BP said that by Saturday, it had received 105,000 claims and made more than 52,000 payments.

The company says it is still too early to estimate the final total of costs and compensation.

BP shares, meanwhile, continued their recent rally, climbing 5.5 percent higher to 384.7 pence ($5.76) in early trading on the London Stock Exchange.

BP stock, which was trading at 655 pence before the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform disaster on April 20, had briefly fallen below 300 pence last month.