LONDON (AP) -- BP PLC's $8 billion share swap deal with Russia's OAO Rosneft has been put on ice until at least early March.
BP said Thursday that an independent arbiter, brought in to oversee a dispute with Russia's partners in its TNK-BP joint venture, has extended a High Court injunction halting the deal until after a further hearing in the week beginning March 7.
The AAR consortium, a group of Russian investors that owns the other half of TNK-BP, secured the injuction last week, claiming the Rosneft deal violates exclusivity provisions in the TNK-BP shareholder agreement and will erode the joint venture's competitive advantage.
BP's declined to comment further amid reports that the three independent board members on the joint venture are hiring their own lawyers.
BP said Thursday that an independent arbiter, brought in to oversee a dispute with Russia's partners in its TNK-BP joint venture, has extended a High Court injunction halting the deal until after a further hearing in the week beginning March 7.
The AAR consortium, a group of Russian investors that owns the other half of TNK-BP, secured the injuction last week, claiming the Rosneft deal violates exclusivity provisions in the TNK-BP shareholder agreement and will erode the joint venture's competitive advantage.
BP's declined to comment further amid reports that the three independent board members on the joint venture are hiring their own lawyers.
