TNK-BP

In June of this year, British oil major BP announced that it would quit TNK-BP, but said later that it is not giving up on Russia. “BP’s management has assured the Russian president that the company is interested in a long-term and mutually beneficial partnership with Russia,” the company said. Relations with BP’s Russian partners in TNK-BP, the Alfa Access Renova (AAR) consortium, made up of some of Russia’s richest private businessmen, went sour last year when BP did a deal to jointly exploit Russia’s rich Arctic territories. That deal collapsed after AAR bought legal action against BP, insisting AAR should have been invited to participate. Currently, Rosneft continues to look at various options for buying stakes in TNK-BP. The deal, if it goes ahead, is BP’s second attempt at tying up with Rosneft; it would also allow the company to exit from its troubled joint venture, TNK-BP.