BP defends Hayward position

BP defended its chief executive today after Russia's deputy prime minister said he expected Tony Hayward to resign soon, as a…

BP defended its chief executive today after Russia's deputy prime minister said he expected Tony Hayward to resign soon, as a strengthening storm threatened efforts to capture more oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico.

British-based BP said Mr Hayward remained CEO and no change was under discussion after Igor Sechin said he expected Mr Hayward to resign and that Russian officials would be told the name of his successor in Moscow today.

But Mr Sechin's office said later that management changes were not raised when he met Mr Hayward and that BP remained committed to its strategic partnership with Russia on various projects.

Mr Hayward was in Russia to address Kremlin worries over BP's local operations after the undersea leak that began on April 20th, threatening fisheries, tourism and wildlife along the Gulf coast. The embattled CEO has drawn criticism for his response t the disaster and a series of gaffes.

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In the Gulf of Mexico, high waves from tropical storm Alex would delay BP's plan to add more oil-siphoning capacity until next week, a company executive told reporters in Houston.

Kent Wells, executive vice president of exploration and production, said current siphoning systems were not expected to be affected by the storm but waves as high as 12 feet would delay hooking up a third vessel to capture oil.

Forecasters from the National Hurricane Center said "Alex could become a hurricane" on Monday or Tuesday. The storm is expected to make landfall again between Brownsville, Texas, and Tuxpan de Rodriguez Cano in Mexico.

Shell shut subsea production at two platforms and BP evacuated some personnel from three Gulf of Mexico platforms due to the threat of Alex, the companies said on Sunday.

Although a hurricane would interrupt BP's efforts to cap the well and clean up the spill, some specialists say the heavy weather could actually help mitigate the environmental damage by dispersing the oil.

The company has set up a $20 billion compensation fund under pressure from the US government.

Reuters