Gazprom will complete on its purchase of a majority stake in TNK-BP by the end of 2008, according to Vedomosti, the FT’s associate paper in Russia. The paper cited sources close to Gazprom and TNK-BP and affixed a firm price on $20bn on the deal.
TNK-BP is currently a joint venture, 50 per cent owned by BP with the remainder owned by a trio of Russian billionaires. It is reported that state-controlled gas company Gazprom intends to buy out the Russian shareholders and has already agreed a deal with BP to acquire 1 per cent from them to gain control.
However, the deal has been plagued with delays and changing terms according to an article in Thursday’s FT.
The deal was first announced last summer and Gazprom is now pushing hard for completion.
Gazprom yesterday raised the pressure on TNK-BP, the Russian oil venture 50 per cent owned by BP, saying Russia could again consider revoking its licence to the Kovykta gas field if talks did not progress on selling control of the project to the state-controlled gas group.
“We cannot wait endlessly,” said Alexander Medvedev, Gazprom’s deputy chief executive. “We received a signal from the Natural Resources Ministry that if this continues they could return to the question of annulling the licence. The ball for closing the deal is in TNK-BP’s court.”