Russian shareholders of the TNK-BP joint venture plan to block dividend payments in opposition to the Rosneft-BP share swap deal in a move that could cost BP $1 billion, a business daily said on Monday.
Kommersant reports that TNK-BP opposed the Rosneft-BP Arctic shelf exploration deal, saying it violated a shareholder agreement between BP and the AAR consortium, which owns half of TNK-BP. Under the agreement, BP can only pursue projects in Russia and Ukraine via TNK-BP, and has to consult with the board in exceptional cases, AAR head Stan Polovets said.
Kommersant said the board of the AAR consortium would consider the possibility of blocking the dividend payment for the fourth quarter of 2010 on Monday, the Bloomberg news agency said.
A source close to company shareholders confirmed the information. AAR declined to comment on Sunday, and a BP representative said the issue was within the competence of the TNK-BP board.
According to Kommersant, TNK-BP dividends for the fourth quarter of 2010 amount to $1.8 billion. Dividends for January-September 2010 were established at $3.9 billion. The paper's source said AAR did not have the power to block the payments and would have to discuss it with the TNK-BP board on February 18.
The AAR is seeking a London court injunction to block the BP-Rosneft deal, which will consider the lawsuit on February 1.
MOSCOW, January 31 (RIA Novosti)
