News bites: Judge cuts BP’s max spill fine, Wyden plans Hanford hearing, and more

Reuters reports that BP scored a victory ahead of its upcoming civil trial over the Gulf of Mexico spill.

“A U.S. judge ruled on Tuesday that BP Plc recovered 810,000 barrels of oil from its 2010 spill site and that this amount should be excluded from certain penalties it may face, cutting its maximum fine by as much as $3.5 billion,” the news service reports.

The Associated Press reports that Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who leads the Senate’s Energy Committee, is planning a hearing on the contaminated Hanford nuclear reservation.

“Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, whose home state neighbors the Hanford nuclear reservation in south-central Washington, said he was troubled by news last week that a radioactive waste tank there is leaking and concerned that a long-planned plant to treat that waste is behind schedule and over budget,” AP reports.

The Washington Post looks at why gasoline prices are rising.

Bloomberg explains Exxon's expansion of its oil and natural-gas reserves.