Bruxelles, 16/092010 (Agence Europe) - According to the Financial Times on 15 September, inspections carried out in 2009 by the British Department responsible for energy and climate revealed that four out of five BP North Sea oil rigs (BP has already had to deal with a serious crisis following the explosion in April of the Deepwater Horizon rig in the Gulf of Mexico) are not sufficiently prepared to tackle possible oil slicks. Several inspections carried out by the British have demonstrated that BP personnel (a company that has three oil drilling rigs in the North Sea) had not received the necessary regulatory training required for tackling an accident leading to oil spillage. Despite the appeal by the European commissioner for energy, Günther Oettinger, the United Kingdom has not put in place a moratorium on new deepwater drilling rigs because it believes that safety standards are sufficiently robust. This decision could be revised if London concludes that non-respect of safety rules by BP proves serious. (E.H./transl.fl)