Gazprom has confirmed that it would be interested in acquiring a stake in oil venture TNK-BP if its current owners are willing to sell.
Gazprom’s oil division said that it would be interested in claiming a stake in the Anglo-Russian joint venture at a news conference. The chief executive of Gazprom Neft told reporters that the company shouldn’t have any trouble generating money to become an equal partner in the venture with BP, and that having an interest in the venture would be particularly beneficial to Slavneft, the oil company jointly owned by Gazprom Neft and TNK-BP.
If the shareholders think about this, we would be the first to be interested. Especially concerning the assets of Slavneft, Reuters quotes Mr Ryazanov as saying.
The Moscow Times, meanwhile, has reported that many analysts expect a purchase to go ahead, although there is a possibility that Rosneft could put in a bid of its own and complicate matters.
In other news, Gazprom has been busy discussing a variety of other alliances. These include talk of further cooperation between Russia and Kazakhstan in the gas sector, an agreement on further measures to promote joint businesses with Chile in the fuel and energy sector, and discussions regarding cooperation with Iran in the oil and gas sector.