BP partners cause chaos
THE CHAIRMAN of Rosneft stepped down yesterday, creating further uncertainty for BP and its plans for a £10bn share swap and exploration deal with the Russian state-owned oil giant.
Igor Sechin, who is also Russia’s deputy prime minister, announced his resignation at a shareholder meeting yesterday as part of a country-wide removal of politicians from top corporate jobs.
His move comes at a turbulent time for BP, which is still awaiting the final decision of the arbitration panel on whether its Rosneft deal breaches the rights of existing Russian partner TNK-BP and its shareholder AAR.
TNK-BP management are preparing a separate lawsuit against BP, according to the Financial Times, in addition to TNK-BP’s joint owner AAR’s ongoing legal fight to halt the deal, which is due to expire on Thursday.