The new claims amount to $34bn, and could prove to be another hard blow to BP’s profits which were reduced by nearly half in 2012 after the company had to pay fines for the disaster by selling assets.

The additional claims were disclosed in the company’s financial results on Tuesday, and come from state and local government on the US Gulf Coast for economic and property damages from the Macondo oil spill. The claims were made last month by Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Louisiana and other local governments, according to BP.