Watchdog gives TNK-BP the all-clear
Wire services
Russia's environmental agency Rosprirodnadzor found no major violations at
BP's Russian venture TNK-BP's main production sites in Siberia after a broad
inspection, an official said today.
"The inspection is over. We found a few cases of non-compliance, which
are not serious," Konstantin Tsypko, advisor to the head of the agency,
told Reuters.
TNK-BP's clear result - which the Ministry of Natural Resources had said was a
routine check - could quieten long-running suspicion that state pressure
over recent months on the producer was part of the Kremlin's tightening
grip over the energy sector.
TNK-BP, which is half owned by both BP and a group of Russian billionaires,
had its offices raided last month by the Federal Security Service and an
employee was arrested on an industrial espionage charge.
Analysts have said the state is putting pressure on TNK-BP's Russian
shareholders to sell out to a large state company such as Gazprom or
Rosneft, though the owners and BP have repeatedly denied this.
22 April 2008 09:24 GMT
| last updated:
22 April 2008 10:36 GMT
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