Russian billionaire Viktor Vekselberg said Tuesday he has no intention of selling his stake in TNK-BP, the BP joint venture that ranks as Russia's third-largest oil producer. His comments came as a senior official at the federal environmental regulator signaled that authorities may subject TNK-BP's Samotlorsky field in West Siberia to fresh inspections.
TNK-BP separately disclosed that it had paid the Russian government $1.44 billion in back taxes covering 2002 and 2003, the largest such settlement since authorities pursued Yukos for $27 billion three years ago. Under the 2003 deal that gave BP its 50 percent share, the Russian partners bear responsibility for all pre-2003 tax claims. Russian prosecutors also opened a criminal case against TNK-BP subsidiary Rospan International over alleged environmental violations at a Western Siberian gas deposit.
TNK-BP is not the only foreign energy company facing pressure. Royal Dutch Shell's $20 billion Sakhalin Island gas project has been subjected to repeated ecological reviews and scrutiny over cost overruns. A federal official said Tuesday that the government estimates it lost $10 billion due to those overruns and needs another six months to complete its calculations.
Separately, Kremlin officials pushed back against NATO warnings about a possible Russian-led natural gas cartel, framing Moscow's energy policies as part of its agenda from the Group of Eight summit held earlier this year in St. Petersburg.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in November 2006, in its own words.