White House says BP has the cash to cover Gulf costs

ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (Reuters) - The White House said on Tuesday it was confident British energy giant BP had sufficient money to cover the costs of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, expected to run into billions of dollars.

"They've got plenty of assets, they've got plenty of cash. We're going to make sure the money's put in the right place to make sure they (Gulf residents) are taken care of," White House spokesman Bill Burton told reporters aboard Air Force One as President Barack Obama headed home from a visit to the Gulf.

BP's share price has halved since the deep water disaster inflicted the worst environmental catastrophe in U.S. history.

Obama will press BP Plc Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg at their first meeting on Wednesday to set up an independently managed fund to pay damage claims by individuals and businesses hurt by the spill.

"What's important to the president as it relates to the claims process is that they're handled fairly, promptly and that BP has enough money to make these folks whole who've been hurt so much by the spill," Burton said.