Factbox: Developments in the Gulf of Mexico oil spill

SPILL CONTAINMENT EFFORTS

* BP Plc said on Friday it collected 15,400 barrels (646,800 gallons/2,448,404 liters) of oil in 24 hours on Thursday, a small decrease from 15,800 barrels collected in the previous 24 hours.

* That brings the cumulative total for six days to more than 88,700 barrels (3,725,400 gallons/14,102,173 liters), BP said.

* BP said it is reconfiguring a service rig used in the failed "top kill" attempt to receive and burn an additional 5,000 to 10,000 barrels per day.

* Once a "hard cap" containment system is in place by the middle of July, BP's oil-siphoning capacity will rise to up to 50,000 barrels per day, U.S. Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen said. BP's collection capacity is currently about 18,000 barrels per day, Allen said.

OIL SLICK THREAT

* U.S. scientists on Thursday doubled their high-end estimate of the amount of crude oil flowing from BP's stricken well into the Gulf of Mexico to as much as 40,000 barrels per day (1.68 million gallons/6.36 million liters).

* Florida demanded $2.5 billion in escrow to cover potential losses funds as heavier oil washed ashore.

* Mexico said it expects oil to reach its shores by December and is considering how to sue BP for damages.

COMPANY NEWS

* BP shares gained 8.7 percent in London after supportive comments from the British government. The shares were up nearly 4 percent in New York at midmorning.

* Worries over BP's dividend payment, which U.S. politicians are pushing to cancel or postpone, hit stock.

* BP faces $3 billion to $6 billion cleanup costs, analysts said.

* Bond managers start buying BP in London.

* The chances of BP declaring bankruptcy to deal with oil-spill claims are remote for now, experts said, although the option remains if claims become overwhelming.

* An analyst cited speculation that PetroChina, Asia's top oil firm, was studying a bid for BP.

* The shares of Transocean Ltd, driller of the blown-out well, and Anadarko Petroleum Corp, a BP partner in the well, also rebounded in early Friday trading.

POLITICS

* U.S. President Barack Obama and senior officials will meet BP Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg at the White House next Wednesday.

* British Prime Minister David Cameron pledged help fighting the spill and plans to discuss the company with Obama by telephone this weekend.

* Obama said on Thursday he and Congress need to update laws on spill compensation and cannot ignore the need for new energy policy despite the disaster.

GLOBAL REACTION

* The International Energy Agency called the spill a potential energy "game changer," restricting future subsea development and limiting oil and gas supply.

* British business leaders are criticizing the Obama Administration for the intense political pressure it is putting on BP due to the spill.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"I don't frankly think we're going to reach a solution, stopping the release of oil into the ocean any quicker, by allowing this to spiral into a tit for tat diplomatic and political spat," Britain's deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg.

(Writing by Bruce Nichols; Editing by Will Dunham)