BP plc shares resumed their slide Monday, closing down nearly 10% at $30.67 on the New York Stock Exchange nearly two months after the drilling rig Deepwater Horizon exploded and sank at the company’s Macondo well site in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM).

President Obama visited the Gulf Coast Monday and was expected to address the nation on Tuesday. It was his fourth visit to the region since the catastrophe on April 20 took 11 lives and unleashed millions of gallons of oil that is now devastating wildlife and the fishing/shrimping and tourism industries.

Top executives from BP as well as ExxonMobil Corp., Chevron Corp., ConocoPhillips and Royal Dutch Shell were scheduled to face lawmakers at a congressional hearing on Capitol Hill Tuesday (see related story).

The company has been pressured by the Obama administration to increase the amount of oil it is capturing from its busted wellhead.

“After being directed to move more quickly, BP is now stepping up its efforts to contain the leaking oil,” U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral James Watson said Monday. “They have now outlined a path to contain more than 50,000 bbl of oil per day by the end of June, two weeks earlier than they originally suggested. Their revised plan also includes methods to achieve even greater redundancy beyond the month of June, to better allow for bad weather or unforeseen circumstances.

“We have continuously demanded strategies and responses from BP that fit the realities of this catastrophic event, for which BP is responsible. We will continue to hold them accountable and bring every possible resource and innovation to bear.”

BP shares reached a 14-year low last week before rebounding (see Daily GPI, June 11; June 10).

©Copyright 2010Intelligence Press Inc. All rights reserved. The preceding news reportmay not be republished or redistributed, in whole or in part, in anyform, without prior written consent of Intelligence Press, Inc.