BP Balks On Russian Pipeline Project
From Wall Street Journal
Tensions between BP PLC and its Russian oil partners spread to the chilly seas of northern Europe this week as the British energy giant said it will suspend preliminary consultations with OAO Gazprom over a possible pipeline to supply Russian gas to the U.K. after the partners refused to allow the talks.
BP and its partners, a group of Soviet-born billionaires know by their holding company AAR, each own half of TNK-BP Ltd., Russia’s third-largest oil producer. Long-running skirmishing between them blew up again a few weeks ago after AAR said the 50-50 structure no longer worked and BP announced it is considering selling its stake. AAR says it wants BP to buy it out, but the two sides haven’t been able to agree on terms and tensions are building.
