President Obama has given BP until July 1 to pay the $69 million bill to clean up the coastline following the biggest US oil spill in history.
The $69 million figure represents 75 per cent of how much the clean-up effort has cost the Federal Government so far.
The company's chief executive Tony Hayward said: "We have cleared the riser from the top of the wellhead and the team is working to complete the cleanup operation before we put the cap on top of the well."
Hayward also insisted that BP is committed to cleaning up the spill, the largest in US history: "We will meet our obligations to all stakeholders."
