Oil giant BP has filed a suit with a Stockholm tribunal against Renova, one of its partners in its TNK-BP Russian joint venture, over Renova's unwillingness to allow it to team up with local giant Rosneft, Kommersant business daily said on Tuesday.
BP signed an agreement in January with Russia's largest oil company Rosneft, in which it would have gained the right to develop Russia's Arctic shelf, and swapped $16 billion worth of stock with Rosneft.
AAR, BP's partner in the TNK-BP joint venture, objected saying TNK-BP's shareholder agreement compelled BP to offer any Russian project to TNK-BP first. The Rosneft deal, which was supposed to bolstered BP's reserves, flopped.
Renova, the holding company of billionaire Viktor Vekselberg, is part of AAR. Renova, through its IES Holding, owns gas and gas distribution assets in Russia and Ukraine.
A Renova source said the company did not understand BP's argument.
"We are sure that Renova did not violate the shareholder agreement and are ready to prove it at all levels," the source said.
