Russia has summoned the chief executive of oil major BP's Russian joint venture for questioning as part of a inquiry into tax evasion, sources close to the matter said today.
The move adds to pressure on BP as it struggles with the Russian billionaires who own the other half of TNK-BP, Russia's third largest producer, amid speculation a state-controlled firm will try to buy a chunk of the firm.
Investors say the struggle over TNK-BP - once held up as a landmark deal in Russia's booming economy - is a test case for the investment climate under President Dmitry Medvedev, a former Gazprom chairman who was sworn in as Kremlin leader last month.
Sources close to the matter said a local Interior Ministry department issued a summons to TNK-BP Chief Executive Robert Dudley as part of a tax evasion probe, but had then postponed the questioning until next week.
"The questioning was planned for this week, but for some reason they have postponed it to early next week," one source said on condition of anonymity, adding that the probe may relate to the non-BP side of the business, known simply as TNK.
"It might well be that the tax probe relates to TNK," the source said. Mr Dudley has never worked at TNK, a company which forms part of TNK-BP.
A source in the Interior Ministry said an investigation was being carried out, but declined to give any details.
A spokesman for the ministry could not be reached for immediate comment. A spokeswoman for TNK-BP declined to comment.
The
Financial Timesreported earlier today that Mr Dudley had been summoned by the investigative department of the Interior Ministry's central federal region.
The paper said BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward was due in Moscow today for talks with Russian shareholders and government officials.
TNK-BP was formed in 2003 as part of a merger of assets owned by BP and a group of Russian billionaires including Mikhail Fridman, German Khan, Viktor Vekselberg and Len Blavatnik.
Former Russian and British leaders Vladimir Putin and Tony Blair presided over the signing of the 2003 deal, which was hailed as the biggest inward equity investment in Russia, with BP spending more than $7 billion in cash and new shares.
Bankers in Moscow say BP and the Russian shareholders have fallen out over who will keep their share in TNK-BP amid attempts by state-controlled firms such as Gazprom or Rosneft to buy into the firm.