Friday, March 25, 2011

Will BP's (BP) Russian Deal Get Stolen by (XOM), (CVX), (RDS-a)?

Even though the share price of BP (NYSE:BP) won't take much of a hit if things in Russia turn for the worst for them, competitors like Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:RDS-A), Chevron (NYSE:CVX) and Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM)are standing on the sidelines possibly waiting for an opportunity to penetrate the Russian market at the expense of BP.

The story here isn't one that is short term, but rather the future revenue and earnings growth of BP, which Russia is a major part of.

As the WSJ say, "The oil major wants to resurrect its share swap and Arctic exploration deal with Rosneft. It could patch things up with its current Russian partner, Alfa-Access-Renova, or rely on Rosneft itself for more support. But the first option will be expensive—and a frustrated Rosneft may look elsewhere for a fruitful relationship."

"BP is now considering whether it can negotiate a settlement with AAR, according to a person familiar with the situation. That could involve paying cash compensation, or selling assets to TNK-BP, which AAR and BP jointly own. Any deal would be costly—Citigroup estimates the Arctic oil reserves in question might be worth $10 billion to BP. And AAR hasn't shown any willingness to settle; it remains adamantly opposed to BP and Rosneft's share swap."

BP was trading at $46.84, up $0.03, or 0.06 percent, as of 2:30 PM EDT.




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