|
Moscow: Russian billionaires who own the TNK-BP oil venture with BP Plc, Europe's second-largest crude producer, want to buy the UK company's 50 per cent stake to end a struggle for control.
Russia's AAR, owned by billionaires Viktor Vekselberg, Mikhail Fridman, German Khan and Len Blavatnik, already own half of TNK-BP and are prepared to buy the rest, Stan Polovets, the group's chief executive officer, said yesterday in an interview in New York.
BP, which gets a quarter of its oil reserves and 20 per cent of its output from the venture, has clashed with its Russian partners over management of TNK-BP. AAR has sought to oust TNK- BP CEO Robert Dudley, saying he has put BP's interests ahead of the venture's.
"This is a continuation of the struggle for control of the British share," said Ariel Cohen, an expert on Russia and energy at the Heritage Foundation in Washington.
Constant friction
"The real question is: Who is going to be ultimate owner of BP's stake?"
The Russian shareholders could wind up selling the stake to state-owned Gazprom Neft, an affiliate of the country's natural-gas monopoly Gazprom, he said.
The TNK-BP dispute comes after Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Europe's second-biggest oil company, was forced in 2006 to cede control of its biggest operation in Russia - the $22 billion Sakhalin-2 oil and gas project - to Gazprom. Regulators had revoked permits for Sakahalin-2 on environmental grounds.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who was the country's president for eight years, said on May 30 in Paris that he warned BP and its partners that a 50-50 venture would lead to "constant friction about who is on top."
Government influence?
There is "no pressure, not at all" from the government on AAR to buy BP's stake, Polovets said. The government isn't expected to intervene in the dispute, he said, declining to comment on whether AAR consulted with the Kremlin on the matter.
"This quarrel highlights the lack of predictability for Western investors in Russia," Cohen said.
The government has denied any involvement in the dispute amid media speculation that state-run Rosneft or Gazprom are vying for a stake.
BP spokesman David Nicholas declined to comment on whether the UK company would consider selling its TNK-BP stake or buying AAR's.
AAR said on July 6 that it's being sued for 8.5 billion roubles ($362 million) by BP for alleged breach of a tax deed of covenant. The Russian group is prepared to sue its British partners, Polovets said, declining to comment further.
The real question is: Who is going to be ultimate owner of BP's stake?"
|
