Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman is throwing caution to the wind. He and his Russian partners in TNK-BP questioned the BP-Rosneft deal as soon as it was announced last week.
Now they are seeking an injunction blocking an agreement that has the personal backing of prime minister Vladimir Putin. And as if this wasn’t enough, Fridman is complaining loudly about his exclusion from the privatisation of the Bank of Moscow and riding roughshod over Telenor, his partner in the Vimpelcom telecoms group.
At times the European Gas Conference in Vienna felt more like a television dating gameshow than a humdrum industry get-together.
It is make-or-break-time for Europe’s ambition to open up the so-called “Southern Corridor” – the bid to access alternative gas supplies in the Caspian region (which holds one quarter of the world’s reserves) and thereby break the continent’s dependency on Russian gas.
AAR in outright rebellion over BP-Rosneft
Last night, we reported that Igor Sechin, the Russian energy tsar, Rosneft chairman and deputy prime minister, had moved to damp down a brewing rebellion from BP’s Russian partners in TNK-BP against the Rosneft tie-up.
Well, it didn’t work. This morning it emerged that AAR has filed for an injuction at the High Court in London, claiming, the deal “may have been a breach” of BP’s existing shareholder agreement to pursue projects in Russia and Ukraine exclusively through TNK-BP.
Sechin insisted at Davos,
We consulted with BP and it is their opinion that they acted in line with the law. We don’t see a problem here.
But BP shareholders are obviously a little concerned. On an otherwise positive day for the FTSE100 and oil stocks, BP’s shares have slipped 0.5 per cent.
Energy headlines: Energy groups report results
- Conoco benefits from higher oil prices – FT
- Oil majors: radical rethink needed – FT Lex
- Exelon results hurt by hedging losses and lower earnings – WSJ (£)
- BG jumps after Brazil oil discovery and spin-off talk – FT
- Heritage Oil falls 29% after gas find – FT
- Australian cyclone halts oil production – Bloomberg
- Brent and WTI gap continues to widen – FT
- Oil dispersants lingered in deep water – NY Times Green blog
- Lawmakers vow to pursue oil spill bill – Reuters
- Founding father backs Glencore IPO – FT
- South Korea to debate carbon-emission trading bill – Bloomberg
- Backing for Brussels on energy market – FT
- Icahn extends offer for Dynegy – FT
- BP and Rosneft clear way for Arctic exploration – The Times (£)
- TNK-BP investors reassured on Rosneft – FT
- Pension giants tilt at the wind – The Times (£)
- UK must deliver on reforms this year, says EDF – FT
- GE Hitachi to re-enter UK reactor market – Argus
Oil industry reacts to Obama’s State of the Union
Earlier, I promised you the reaction of the oil industry to the call by Barack Obama to end its subsidies.
Well, here is the API’s full reaction, courtesy of Jack Gerard, the organisation’s chief:
Your chance to quiz James Cameron
Many thanks for all your questions for Ian Simm, chief executive of Impax Asset Management. His answers will appear on this site on Friday, January 28th.
Next week, the person in the hotseat will be James Cameron, vice chairman of Climate Change Capital, the investment manager specialising in carbon markets and clean tech companies.
Cameron is also one of the green industry’s most high-profile advocates, and this is your chance to ask him about everything from the carbon price to the success of the Cancun climate talks. He will have just returned from Davos, so can give an insider’s view on all the wheeling, dealing and gossip that happened there.
Email all your questions to energysource@ft.com by the end of Sunday, January 30th.
While China declares itself as a world leader in wind energy, India is also trying to make its claim in the global renewable energy sector, and it is one step closer with the announcement that it plans to build Asia’s first commercial tidal power plant.
The state government of Gujarat has signed preliminary agreement with Britain’s Atlantis Resources corporation to build a 250 MW tidal power plant in the Gulf of Kutch along the country’s western coast.
Obama delivers boost to clean energy UPDATED
Yesterday I blogged on what Carol Browner’s departure could mean for green policies under the Obama administration. Environmentalists were worried that this showed a shift by the White House away from tackling climate change and towards appeasing business.
They needn’t have worried. In the president’s State of the Union Address last night, he spent a considerable amount of time stressing his commitment to clean energy, and making some important and concrete pledges at the same time.
Calling this “our Sputnik moment”, Obama said:
We’ll invest in biomedical research, information technology, and especially clean energy technology – an investment that will strengthen our security, protect our planet, and create countless new jobs for our people.
Energy headlines: Lithuania complains about Gazprom
- Lithuania to hit at Gazprom in EU complaint – FT
- UK policies ‘could lead to second dash for gas’ – WSJ (£)
- Industry warns over delays in Gulf permits – FT
- Obama sets 2035 clean electricity target – Reuters
- Dynegy attracts no offers to rival Icahn’s bid – WSJ (£)
- Russians prepare for listing spree in London – FT
- Glencore to seek $2.5bn from Hong Kong IPO – Bloomberg
- MPs ‘sceptical’ that nuclear power stations will be built on time – The Telegraph
- Siemens lifted by industrial and power orders – FT
- Baker Hughes profit quadruples on demand for drilling – Bloomberg
- CSX expects strong gains in coal exports – Argus
- China’s energy use could fox the bears – FT
- High heating oil prices spark OFT inquiry – The Telegraph
- Companies are key to climate change agreement – FT
- Climate sceptic ‘misled Congress over oil industry funding’ – The Guardian
- Having faith in Bob Dudley – FT
- The future of algae fuels is… when? – NY Times Green blog
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