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What's happeneing with Sibir??? (SBE)
gildph - 27 Aug 2004 10:31
Has anyone please got any info on this one? It was supposed to start trading again in July and then August - almost end of August and nothing!
BANKONE - 22 Sep 2005 18:57 - 115 of 229
A lot of readers but no writers - where has all the confidence gone my 6000 went through at 8.12 this morning unaware of the RNS whilst travelling to work. Excellent RNS brought about a number of B buys throughout the day but sells outweighed the buys 2:1. Result due on BVI hearing to day sometime will be interesting what it brings either PI's will be running for the exits or big buys will come in but nevertheless interesting reports yeaterday in the Guardian re Mr A rags to riches story and in the business telegraph stating that SBEs results will post strong interims when announced on 30th Sept 2005'
Bankone - these results I believe will be exceptional and maybe that news has already been included in the present day price considering the nighon one pound rise in the past 4 weeks or so.
David Conn Sports reporter of the year
Wednesday September 21, 2005
The Guardian
Roman Abramovich is in court today in Tortola, the British Virgin Islands, a defendant on a writ alongside his oil company, Sibneft, and six other companies based in the BVI, Panama and Cyprus, which Abramovich is alleged to control. In the scale of the cataclysms he has sailed through on his journey from impoverished orphan in communist Russia to owner of a vast pool of the country's privatised oil fields - and Chelsea FC - this is a trifling matter, a claim against Abramovich and his companies by another oil company, Sibir, for a half-share worth up to $2bn in a joint venture to serve Moscow with oil.
Sibir and Sibneft formed the company, Sibneft-Yugra, in November 2000, owning it 50-50 and work began on extracting oil. But then, on September 28, 2002, Sibir claim that Sibneft executives, illegally and without Sibir's knowledge, increased the number of shares in the joint venture tenfold. The new shares were transferred to three offshore companies, Tranquillo Trading, whose address is the second floor of an office block in Panama City, Shaw Investment & Finance and Carroll Trading, both registered in the BVI. As a result, Sibir's holding in their own joint venture was diluted from 50% to just 5%.
Five months later, on February 4, 2003, Sibir claim that even this minor holding was further diluted. They say that this time the number of Sibneft-Yugra shares was increased more than fivefold reducing Sibir's holding to below 1%. The offshore companies holding the new shares then sold their stakes to three new entities, Ferenco Investment & Services, registered in Limassol, Cyprus, Richard Enterprises and Gregory Trading, both of the BVI. Sibir, which is registered in Britain and whose chief executive, Henry Cameron, is a Scot, claim they were given no notice that the meetings were being held or that new shares were about to be issued.
"We believe this was a fraud on us to deliberately deprive us of half our company," Cameron told me this week. "It would have cost around $16,000 (8,870) to buy the shares to maintain a stake in a very important oil joint venture worth up to $2bn. It is ridiculous to believe we simply chose not to take up our rights."
Sibir began court proceedings in the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, BVI, in July this year, naming all six offshore companies and Sibneft and Abramovich personally as defendants, claiming they should pay Sibir the value of a half-share in Sibneft-Yugra.
Abramovich, with partners, owns 72% of Sibneft, one of Russia's largest companies, which he bought in 1995 for a song in the loans-for-shares scandal through which vast, state-owned assets were sold desperately cheaply to a handful of men who then became billionaires overnight - the oligarchs. Abramovich is not a director of Sibneft; however, Cameron told me they decided to sue Abramovich personally because they dealt with him from the beginning.
"The negotiations to do the joint venture originated with Mr Abramovich and we therefore claim that the conspiracy to defraud us of our share could not have happened without his knowledge."
John Mann, the spokesman for Sibneft and for Abramovich personally, told me that they deny all the claims and are defending the action fully. Sibir have had limited success with similar claims in Russia.
"We say that everything at Sibneft-Yugra was done legally and with integrity," Mann said. "We have acted entirely legitimately in the conduct of the joint venture. We reject all the allegations and we fully expect to win in court again."
Cameron told me the claim was brought in the BVI - which, despite its status as a tax haven, effectively operates English law - because four of the offshore companies are registered there. The current proceedings, which opened yesterday and will conclude tomorrow, will hear Sibneft's argument that the case should be thrown out because, they claim, the BVI has no jurisdiction to try the case. Sibir, however, won a previous hearing, which led to the newly issued shares, owned by the offshore companies, being frozen pending the outcome of the case.
Cameron has talked so publicly about the case because, he told me, he is "affronted" by the degree of corporate malpractice he claims has taken place: "I work in Russia so I am used to difficulties but I had a feeling of almost disbelief at the way this was done. I think it is very important for people in the West to understand it."
Since he bought Chelsea in August 2003, Abramovich has floated into British life largely free of criticism, or even much knowledge, about who he is and where he has come from. When his money bought Chelsea the Premiership last year, he was dragged smiling on to the Stamford Bridge pitch, showered in champagne, his team dancing delightedly around him, a mysterious fairy godfather, showering football with beneficence. Precious few voices have been sounded in caution, none prominent in football or at Chelsea, except the former sports minister, Tony Banks, who said he wanted to be sure Chelsea's new owner was "fit and proper". One or two have called for investigations into the source of Abramovich's cash but in truth there is no great mystery about it.
The loans-for-shares privatisations, what became known on the Moscow streets as "grab-it-isations", were public and have been extremely well documented. With Boris Yeltsin's Russia unravelling economically and politically in 1995, amid fears that the communists could return in the next election, seven men who had made initial fortunes in the free-for-all which followed communism's collapse offered to loan the government just 1.12bn in exchange for the right to manage 44 state-owned conglomerates, including the world's largest nickel company. Later they were allowed to buy the companies at a fraction of their true worth in closed auctions; Abramovich, with his then partner Boris Berezovsky, bought the Sibneft oil riches for just over $100m.
Russia, which had banned private wealth under communism, became one of the world's most divided countries, with a few men owning natural resources whose true worth is billions, while 20% of the population, some 50 million people, live below the poverty line of just $30 a month. Here Abramovich is celebrated but in Russia the oligarchs are widely loathed: "The vast majority of Russians believe the oligarchs stole those assets," explains Nikonov Alekseevitch, who runs the Polity Foundation think tank in Moscow. "There is huge resentment of them and the terribly unequal society we now have as a result."
While the football authorities here argue none of this is their business, they have done nothing to protect the sport itself. Abramovich said he looked at the major Spanish clubs, Real Madrid and Barcelona, before he bought Chelsea, but he could not buy them because they are democratic institutions, owned by their members. All our clubs are companies and as such up for sale.
The Premier League has no qualms about allowing businessmen to purchase its clubs, then throw in millions to buy success. The icy-eyed capitalists of American football's NFL know better; to them "competitive balance" is vital to the sport's success and money is shared strictly round the franchises. Here Abramovich can pour in whatever he wants to transform Chelsea from a debt-laden Ken Bates company to one with a locker-room of the world's best players.
"I know that the average person doesn't care very much about a dispute between two oil companies," Cameron told me. "But I think they do care about the way people conduct themselves in business."
Small mention in the business.telegraph............
Sibir Energy eased 7 to 332p on profit-taking. Dealers recently speculated the oil production group will post strong interim results on September 30.
Bankone - these results I believe will be exceptional and maybe that news has already been included in the present day price considering the nighon one pound rise in the past 4 weeks or so.
David Conn Sports reporter of the year
Wednesday September 21, 2005
The Guardian
Roman Abramovich is in court today in Tortola, the British Virgin Islands, a defendant on a writ alongside his oil company, Sibneft, and six other companies based in the BVI, Panama and Cyprus, which Abramovich is alleged to control. In the scale of the cataclysms he has sailed through on his journey from impoverished orphan in communist Russia to owner of a vast pool of the country's privatised oil fields - and Chelsea FC - this is a trifling matter, a claim against Abramovich and his companies by another oil company, Sibir, for a half-share worth up to $2bn in a joint venture to serve Moscow with oil.
Sibir and Sibneft formed the company, Sibneft-Yugra, in November 2000, owning it 50-50 and work began on extracting oil. But then, on September 28, 2002, Sibir claim that Sibneft executives, illegally and without Sibir's knowledge, increased the number of shares in the joint venture tenfold. The new shares were transferred to three offshore companies, Tranquillo Trading, whose address is the second floor of an office block in Panama City, Shaw Investment & Finance and Carroll Trading, both registered in the BVI. As a result, Sibir's holding in their own joint venture was diluted from 50% to just 5%.
Five months later, on February 4, 2003, Sibir claim that even this minor holding was further diluted. They say that this time the number of Sibneft-Yugra shares was increased more than fivefold reducing Sibir's holding to below 1%. The offshore companies holding the new shares then sold their stakes to three new entities, Ferenco Investment & Services, registered in Limassol, Cyprus, Richard Enterprises and Gregory Trading, both of the BVI. Sibir, which is registered in Britain and whose chief executive, Henry Cameron, is a Scot, claim they were given no notice that the meetings were being held or that new shares were about to be issued.
"We believe this was a fraud on us to deliberately deprive us of half our company," Cameron told me this week. "It would have cost around $16,000 (8,870) to buy the shares to maintain a stake in a very important oil joint venture worth up to $2bn. It is ridiculous to believe we simply chose not to take up our rights."
Sibir began court proceedings in the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, BVI, in July this year, naming all six offshore companies and Sibneft and Abramovich personally as defendants, claiming they should pay Sibir the value of a half-share in Sibneft-Yugra.
Abramovich, with partners, owns 72% of Sibneft, one of Russia's largest companies, which he bought in 1995 for a song in the loans-for-shares scandal through which vast, state-owned assets were sold desperately cheaply to a handful of men who then became billionaires overnight - the oligarchs. Abramovich is not a director of Sibneft; however, Cameron told me they decided to sue Abramovich personally because they dealt with him from the beginning.
"The negotiations to do the joint venture originated with Mr Abramovich and we therefore claim that the conspiracy to defraud us of our share could not have happened without his knowledge."
John Mann, the spokesman for Sibneft and for Abramovich personally, told me that they deny all the claims and are defending the action fully. Sibir have had limited success with similar claims in Russia.
"We say that everything at Sibneft-Yugra was done legally and with integrity," Mann said. "We have acted entirely legitimately in the conduct of the joint venture. We reject all the allegations and we fully expect to win in court again."
Cameron told me the claim was brought in the BVI - which, despite its status as a tax haven, effectively operates English law - because four of the offshore companies are registered there. The current proceedings, which opened yesterday and will conclude tomorrow, will hear Sibneft's argument that the case should be thrown out because, they claim, the BVI has no jurisdiction to try the case. Sibir, however, won a previous hearing, which led to the newly issued shares, owned by the offshore companies, being frozen pending the outcome of the case.
Cameron has talked so publicly about the case because, he told me, he is "affronted" by the degree of corporate malpractice he claims has taken place: "I work in Russia so I am used to difficulties but I had a feeling of almost disbelief at the way this was done. I think it is very important for people in the West to understand it."
Since he bought Chelsea in August 2003, Abramovich has floated into British life largely free of criticism, or even much knowledge, about who he is and where he has come from. When his money bought Chelsea the Premiership last year, he was dragged smiling on to the Stamford Bridge pitch, showered in champagne, his team dancing delightedly around him, a mysterious fairy godfather, showering football with beneficence. Precious few voices have been sounded in caution, none prominent in football or at Chelsea, except the former sports minister, Tony Banks, who said he wanted to be sure Chelsea's new owner was "fit and proper". One or two have called for investigations into the source of Abramovich's cash but in truth there is no great mystery about it.
The loans-for-shares privatisations, what became known on the Moscow streets as "grab-it-isations", were public and have been extremely well documented. With Boris Yeltsin's Russia unravelling economically and politically in 1995, amid fears that the communists could return in the next election, seven men who had made initial fortunes in the free-for-all which followed communism's collapse offered to loan the government just 1.12bn in exchange for the right to manage 44 state-owned conglomerates, including the world's largest nickel company. Later they were allowed to buy the companies at a fraction of their true worth in closed auctions; Abramovich, with his then partner Boris Berezovsky, bought the Sibneft oil riches for just over $100m.
Russia, which had banned private wealth under communism, became one of the world's most divided countries, with a few men owning natural resources whose true worth is billions, while 20% of the population, some 50 million people, live below the poverty line of just $30 a month. Here Abramovich is celebrated but in Russia the oligarchs are widely loathed: "The vast majority of Russians believe the oligarchs stole those assets," explains Nikonov Alekseevitch, who runs the Polity Foundation think tank in Moscow. "There is huge resentment of them and the terribly unequal society we now have as a result."
While the football authorities here argue none of this is their business, they have done nothing to protect the sport itself. Abramovich said he looked at the major Spanish clubs, Real Madrid and Barcelona, before he bought Chelsea, but he could not buy them because they are democratic institutions, owned by their members. All our clubs are companies and as such up for sale.
The Premier League has no qualms about allowing businessmen to purchase its clubs, then throw in millions to buy success. The icy-eyed capitalists of American football's NFL know better; to them "competitive balance" is vital to the sport's success and money is shared strictly round the franchises. Here Abramovich can pour in whatever he wants to transform Chelsea from a debt-laden Ken Bates company to one with a locker-room of the world's best players.
"I know that the average person doesn't care very much about a dispute between two oil companies," Cameron told me. "But I think they do care about the way people conduct themselves in business."
Small mention in the business.telegraph............
Sibir Energy eased 7 to 332p on profit-taking. Dealers recently speculated the oil production group will post strong interim results on September 30.
BANKONE - 22 Sep 2005 19:07 - 116 of 229
Sibir Energy plc has completed the acquisition of Hitchens Global SA, bringing to 100% its ownership of Russian subsidiary, OAO NK Evikhon. Evikhon is the formal partner with Shell in a 50/50 joint venture to develop the Salym group of oil fields in Western Siberia where the start of commercial production is weeks away.
The Hitchens acquisition is part of a larger corporate restructuring approved by shareholders at Sibirs EGM on December 20, 2004 and brings into the company three assets: 8% of Evikhon, benefit of a $9.9 million debt payable by Evikhon (eliminated on consolidation), and a 12.5% interest in Mosnefteproduct, a downstream fuels retailing and distribution network in the Moscow region. In parallel Sibir is finalizing the acquisition of a 25% + 1 share interest in STBP directly from its beneficial owner, Mr. Chalva Tchigirinsky, as provided for by the shareholder approved restructuring. STBP is a joint venture which owns and operates a network of 45 BP branded filling stations in the City of Moscow.
Salym Update
Sibir also announced that commercial production at the Salym fields will begin in late November as drilling and large infrastructure projects continue to make significant progress. The Salym development is operated by Salym Petroleum Development (SPD), the joint venture between Shell and Sibirs Evikhon.
Four drilling rigs currently working in West and Upper Salym have drilled over 44 wells with 30 completed to date. Well results are showing reservoir development in line with expectations, some with net pay in excess of initial projections. Overall drilling times have been reduced to less than 15 days, adding momentum to a program that is scheduled to drill at least 67 wells and have 33 or more hooked-up and producing by year-end 2005.
Construction of the Central Processing Facility (CPF) and Crude Transfer Facility (CTF) is on schedule with completion imminent. Welding on the 88km export pipeline has been completed and hydro-tested. The finalization of these key infrastructure projects will allow SPD to begin pumping crude oil directly from the Salym fields into the Transneft system in November, 2005.
Of these developments, Sibir CEO, Henry Cameron said, By securing Sibirs full 100% ownership of Evikhon we ensure that Sibir shareholders will receive full benefit of our joint venture with Shell. Early well results are very encouraging and give us confidence that the Salym development will realize its rich potential. We also very pleased to see the project reaching commercial production on schedule. It is a tribute to excellent work the SPD team has done in fusing the best of international oil field practice and local Russian expertise.
The Hitchens acquisition is part of a larger corporate restructuring approved by shareholders at Sibirs EGM on December 20, 2004 and brings into the company three assets: 8% of Evikhon, benefit of a $9.9 million debt payable by Evikhon (eliminated on consolidation), and a 12.5% interest in Mosnefteproduct, a downstream fuels retailing and distribution network in the Moscow region. In parallel Sibir is finalizing the acquisition of a 25% + 1 share interest in STBP directly from its beneficial owner, Mr. Chalva Tchigirinsky, as provided for by the shareholder approved restructuring. STBP is a joint venture which owns and operates a network of 45 BP branded filling stations in the City of Moscow.
Salym Update
Sibir also announced that commercial production at the Salym fields will begin in late November as drilling and large infrastructure projects continue to make significant progress. The Salym development is operated by Salym Petroleum Development (SPD), the joint venture between Shell and Sibirs Evikhon.
Four drilling rigs currently working in West and Upper Salym have drilled over 44 wells with 30 completed to date. Well results are showing reservoir development in line with expectations, some with net pay in excess of initial projections. Overall drilling times have been reduced to less than 15 days, adding momentum to a program that is scheduled to drill at least 67 wells and have 33 or more hooked-up and producing by year-end 2005.
Construction of the Central Processing Facility (CPF) and Crude Transfer Facility (CTF) is on schedule with completion imminent. Welding on the 88km export pipeline has been completed and hydro-tested. The finalization of these key infrastructure projects will allow SPD to begin pumping crude oil directly from the Salym fields into the Transneft system in November, 2005.
Of these developments, Sibir CEO, Henry Cameron said, By securing Sibirs full 100% ownership of Evikhon we ensure that Sibir shareholders will receive full benefit of our joint venture with Shell. Early well results are very encouraging and give us confidence that the Salym development will realize its rich potential. We also very pleased to see the project reaching commercial production on schedule. It is a tribute to excellent work the SPD team has done in fusing the best of international oil field practice and local Russian expertise.
Sunray41
- 22 Sep 2005 22:41
- 117 of 229
H ave faith B1, also topped-up today before rns and during house removal.
I am old enough to recall the Ferranti fraud where a guy called Guerin from US. walked away with the kitty. If memory serves me he was given custodial in a Federal jail.---------------- The asset was never recovered
Henry Cameron is really going for this one, so an interesting time will be had by all.
Thanks for your regular info and views
I am old enough to recall the Ferranti fraud where a guy called Guerin from US. walked away with the kitty. If memory serves me he was given custodial in a Federal jail.---------------- The asset was never recovered
Henry Cameron is really going for this one, so an interesting time will be had by all.
Thanks for your regular info and views
BANKONE - 23 Sep 2005 19:32 - 118 of 229
Another buying day today nearly 2:1 1/2 million shares traded. Good article in the Daily Mail re the Gazprom and Sibneft Saga. The author suggests that Mr A 'may' have to get the thorn 'HC and SBE' out of his side before the deal can go through. Also states that HC and SIBIR have spent 1bn pounds on legal fees to win this one. I have faith but I hate to see an excellent company being held down by attempting to get back what is rightfully owned when really the company SBE is worth more than what it is today with or without the asset. The MMs know it B and T trades and when the interims are released (subject to a bit of profit taking) Northwards she will go. No news yet re BVI - frantically searching Moscow press and other dailys but I suppose if as it is believed it is 'in camra' and legal proceedings are still ongoing then the subjudisary rule applies. Good luck Sunray41 and the rest of the posters.
BANKONE - 23 Sep 2005 19:45 - 119 of 229
From Anton.
Sibir Energy. Consolidates stake in Evikhon; Salym production to begin in November
Separately, Sibir said commercial production at its Salym field (305mn bbls of 1P reserves) is just weeks away, with 30 of the planned 33 wells completed to date. The project is a JV between Evikhon and Shell, and preliminary flow indications are at or above expectations.
The news shows Sibir is continuing to position itself as a well-integrated company, both upstream and downstream. We reiterate our Buy recommendation.Friday,
(Article found on another BB)
September 23, 2005. Issue 3259. Page 1.
Fortunes Go to Kremlin Favorites
By Catherine Belton
Staff Writer
With Gazprom's securement of a record $12 billion loan now appearing to be a mere formality, the gas giant looks set to buy out Roman Abramovich's stake in Sibneft -- the biggest state buyout in post-Soviet history.
The deal would apparently let Abramovich walk out of Sibneft with nearly $9 billion in profit on an acquisition he made in the controversial loans-for-shares auctions of the mid-1990s.
Gazprom's buyout of his stake would also mark a stark delineation between Abramovich and his erstwhile partner Mikhail Khodorkovsky, whose conviction on fraud and tax evasion was upheld by an appeals court on Thursday.
Sources familiar with the negotiations between Gazprom and a syndicate of Western banks said that the loan was "imminent" and would be signed once remaining formalities were settled.
Earlier this week, Gazprom deputy CEO Dmitry Medvedev said that the gas giant could complete the acquisition of Sibneft by the end of the year.
The deal would put almost $9 billion in cash into the pocket of Abramovich, who along with his one-time partner Boris Berezovsky forked out a little more than $100 million for the oil firm in 1995-96.
It is difficult not to compare Abramovich's fortunes to those of Khodorkovsky, who now faces an eight-year prison sentence after a highly politicized trial and whose Yukos oil empire has been crushed under a $28 billion back tax claim. The legal onslaught was widely seen as retribution for the threat that Khodorkovsky posed to Kremlin power.
Even though the Audit Chamber has found that Sibneft underpaid its taxes by 10 billion rubles ($360 million) in 2001 and 2002, no legal action has been taken against the firm. Sibneft has denied any wrongdoing.
Meanwhile, Sibneft's effective tax rate in 2001 was just 9 percent, below Yukos' 13 percent in 2002 and much lower than the statutory rate of 24 percent.
Furthermore, lingering questions over Sibneft's murky ownership have raised speculation that Abramovich has the backing of the Kremlin.
In the summer, President Vladimir Putin publicly said that he was aware of talks between Sibneft and Gazprom -- and that the state should treat it as any other deal.
Berezovsky, who has fallen out of favor with the Kremlin and is living in exile in London, said in a telephone interview Thursday that he had evidence that Putin was seeking personal gain in allowing the Sibneft sale to go through unhindered.
In July, Berezovsky said he was preparing to sue Abramovich in a London court on charges of forcing him out of his stakes in Sibneft and other major assets at a knockdown price after relationship with Putin's Kremlin soured in 2000.
"I have been saying for a long time that Putin is a business partner of Abramovich," he said. "I have no doubt that the profits from the sale of Sibneft will be shared between Abramovich and Putin, as well as among several other individuals."
The difference in treatment between Khodorkovsky and Abramovich underlines Putin's interest, he said.
"It's now clear they just took away Yukos because it was not owned by any of their gang. Proof of this is exactly what's happening with Sibneft now. Putin has said he personally supports the deal."
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on Berezovsky's remarks. "A person who is under an international arrest warrant cannot accuse anyone of anything," he said. "It would not be correct to make any comment on his remarks."
Russian prosecutors have charged Berezovsky with widespread fraud.
Berezovsky claimed he had seen direct evidence of Putin's collusion with Abramovich in Sibneft when Abramovich forced him to sell the 50 percent stake in Sibneft he jointly owned with partner Badri Patarkatsishvili for $1.3 billion in 2000.
Abramovich said he was speaking in Putin's name when he told him he had better sell or watch the stake be taken from him anyway, Berezovsky said.
"This was done for the benefit of Putin. I can't rule out that during the investigation in England and during the court proceedings, Putin will be called to the court to give evidence."
Berezovsky also claimed he had documentary evidence of Putin's interest in Sibneft, but declined to elaborate on what his records might reveal, saying he did not want to give his enemies time to prepare for his legal attack.
Berezovsky said his suit would likely be filed in October, rather than the September date he had given earlier.
Sibneft spokesman John Mann denied that Abramovich had any special ties to Putin.
"It is clear to anyone that the relationship between Abramovich and Putin is the same the president has with any regional governor in the country," he said. Abramovich is governor of the Chukotka region in the Far East.
Mann declined to disclose the exact shareholder breakdown of Sibneft, saying only that 72 percent of Sibneft was managed by the Millhouse holding company on behalf of core shareholders, who "include Abramovich and a group of current and former Sibneft managers."
Mann declined to say whether the core shareholder group included any other individuals.
Sibneft's ownership structure has often posed a conundrum for financiers and even bankers extending loans to the firm.
"Documents on the ownership of Millhouse are pretty meaningless. If you look at them, you pretty soon run into a dead end," said one banker, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The banker added that a rigorous look at the company's ownership had not been a requirement in previous loan deals secured by oil exports.
Other market observers have suggested that Abramovich may at the least have to share some of his winnings with other state officials.
"One oligarch has said to me he doesn't think for a minute that Abramovich will keep all that cash. He owes a lot of people a lot of money, and a lot of it will make its way back to the Family," said a source close to a natural resources tycoon, referring to the clique of businessmen and powerbrokers who surrounded former President Boris Yeltsin.
Analysts said any lawsuit launched by Berezovsky was unlikely to affect Gazprom's title to the oil firm. Yet, another legal battle could give the gas giant and its big Western lenders some reason to pause.
Sibneft's former partner, Sibir Energy, is suing the oil company in Russia and the British Virgin Islands, alleging that it was pushed out of a joint venture to develop the Sibneft-Yugra field.
Hearings as to whether the British Virgin Islands court had jurisdiction over the case began Thursday, a spokesman for Sibir Energy said.
The spokesman said he could not comment further because the hearings were closed. If jurisdiction is granted, proceedings could take months, he said.
"The outcome of this could impact the value of Sibneft," said Chris Weafer, chief strategist at Alfa Bank.
Sibneft-Yugra produces some 8 percent of Sibneft's total oil output, according to Valery Nesterov, an oil and gas analyst at Troika Dialog, who said that the field could be excluded from the deal.
Gazprom has been so open and active in seeking to buy out Sibneft that the gas giant would suffer a serious blow should rivals Rosneft or Surgutneftegaz snap it up at the last moment.
"This has become a question of image after Gazprom's lack of success in merging with Rosneft," Nesterov said, referring to the failed merger between the two energy giants earlier this year.
"It would not be good for them to get into the same situation again. It's become a question of reputation and of how much you can trust the company's management."
"You still can't say it's a cinch," Weafer said. "As we saw in Rosneft, anything is possible right up to the point where the ink is still drying on the page."
NOTICE THAT THE COURT CASE COMMENCED THURSDAY NOT TUESDAY as reported in this article.
What is interesting in this article it suggests that the case in the BVI is to whether or not the BVI courts have jurisdiction - If that all it is about then no result as to the return of the asset will be forthcoming this millenium. Doesn't matter as I have said many times the company is strong enough without it.
Sibir Energy. Consolidates stake in Evikhon; Salym production to begin in November
Separately, Sibir said commercial production at its Salym field (305mn bbls of 1P reserves) is just weeks away, with 30 of the planned 33 wells completed to date. The project is a JV between Evikhon and Shell, and preliminary flow indications are at or above expectations.
The news shows Sibir is continuing to position itself as a well-integrated company, both upstream and downstream. We reiterate our Buy recommendation.Friday,
(Article found on another BB)
September 23, 2005. Issue 3259. Page 1.
Fortunes Go to Kremlin Favorites
By Catherine Belton
Staff Writer
With Gazprom's securement of a record $12 billion loan now appearing to be a mere formality, the gas giant looks set to buy out Roman Abramovich's stake in Sibneft -- the biggest state buyout in post-Soviet history.
The deal would apparently let Abramovich walk out of Sibneft with nearly $9 billion in profit on an acquisition he made in the controversial loans-for-shares auctions of the mid-1990s.
Gazprom's buyout of his stake would also mark a stark delineation between Abramovich and his erstwhile partner Mikhail Khodorkovsky, whose conviction on fraud and tax evasion was upheld by an appeals court on Thursday.
Sources familiar with the negotiations between Gazprom and a syndicate of Western banks said that the loan was "imminent" and would be signed once remaining formalities were settled.
Earlier this week, Gazprom deputy CEO Dmitry Medvedev said that the gas giant could complete the acquisition of Sibneft by the end of the year.
The deal would put almost $9 billion in cash into the pocket of Abramovich, who along with his one-time partner Boris Berezovsky forked out a little more than $100 million for the oil firm in 1995-96.
It is difficult not to compare Abramovich's fortunes to those of Khodorkovsky, who now faces an eight-year prison sentence after a highly politicized trial and whose Yukos oil empire has been crushed under a $28 billion back tax claim. The legal onslaught was widely seen as retribution for the threat that Khodorkovsky posed to Kremlin power.
Even though the Audit Chamber has found that Sibneft underpaid its taxes by 10 billion rubles ($360 million) in 2001 and 2002, no legal action has been taken against the firm. Sibneft has denied any wrongdoing.
Meanwhile, Sibneft's effective tax rate in 2001 was just 9 percent, below Yukos' 13 percent in 2002 and much lower than the statutory rate of 24 percent.
Furthermore, lingering questions over Sibneft's murky ownership have raised speculation that Abramovich has the backing of the Kremlin.
In the summer, President Vladimir Putin publicly said that he was aware of talks between Sibneft and Gazprom -- and that the state should treat it as any other deal.
Berezovsky, who has fallen out of favor with the Kremlin and is living in exile in London, said in a telephone interview Thursday that he had evidence that Putin was seeking personal gain in allowing the Sibneft sale to go through unhindered.
In July, Berezovsky said he was preparing to sue Abramovich in a London court on charges of forcing him out of his stakes in Sibneft and other major assets at a knockdown price after relationship with Putin's Kremlin soured in 2000.
"I have been saying for a long time that Putin is a business partner of Abramovich," he said. "I have no doubt that the profits from the sale of Sibneft will be shared between Abramovich and Putin, as well as among several other individuals."
The difference in treatment between Khodorkovsky and Abramovich underlines Putin's interest, he said.
"It's now clear they just took away Yukos because it was not owned by any of their gang. Proof of this is exactly what's happening with Sibneft now. Putin has said he personally supports the deal."
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on Berezovsky's remarks. "A person who is under an international arrest warrant cannot accuse anyone of anything," he said. "It would not be correct to make any comment on his remarks."
Russian prosecutors have charged Berezovsky with widespread fraud.
Berezovsky claimed he had seen direct evidence of Putin's collusion with Abramovich in Sibneft when Abramovich forced him to sell the 50 percent stake in Sibneft he jointly owned with partner Badri Patarkatsishvili for $1.3 billion in 2000.
Abramovich said he was speaking in Putin's name when he told him he had better sell or watch the stake be taken from him anyway, Berezovsky said.
"This was done for the benefit of Putin. I can't rule out that during the investigation in England and during the court proceedings, Putin will be called to the court to give evidence."
Berezovsky also claimed he had documentary evidence of Putin's interest in Sibneft, but declined to elaborate on what his records might reveal, saying he did not want to give his enemies time to prepare for his legal attack.
Berezovsky said his suit would likely be filed in October, rather than the September date he had given earlier.
Sibneft spokesman John Mann denied that Abramovich had any special ties to Putin.
"It is clear to anyone that the relationship between Abramovich and Putin is the same the president has with any regional governor in the country," he said. Abramovich is governor of the Chukotka region in the Far East.
Mann declined to disclose the exact shareholder breakdown of Sibneft, saying only that 72 percent of Sibneft was managed by the Millhouse holding company on behalf of core shareholders, who "include Abramovich and a group of current and former Sibneft managers."
Mann declined to say whether the core shareholder group included any other individuals.
Sibneft's ownership structure has often posed a conundrum for financiers and even bankers extending loans to the firm.
"Documents on the ownership of Millhouse are pretty meaningless. If you look at them, you pretty soon run into a dead end," said one banker, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The banker added that a rigorous look at the company's ownership had not been a requirement in previous loan deals secured by oil exports.
Other market observers have suggested that Abramovich may at the least have to share some of his winnings with other state officials.
"One oligarch has said to me he doesn't think for a minute that Abramovich will keep all that cash. He owes a lot of people a lot of money, and a lot of it will make its way back to the Family," said a source close to a natural resources tycoon, referring to the clique of businessmen and powerbrokers who surrounded former President Boris Yeltsin.
Analysts said any lawsuit launched by Berezovsky was unlikely to affect Gazprom's title to the oil firm. Yet, another legal battle could give the gas giant and its big Western lenders some reason to pause.
Sibneft's former partner, Sibir Energy, is suing the oil company in Russia and the British Virgin Islands, alleging that it was pushed out of a joint venture to develop the Sibneft-Yugra field.
Hearings as to whether the British Virgin Islands court had jurisdiction over the case began Thursday, a spokesman for Sibir Energy said.
The spokesman said he could not comment further because the hearings were closed. If jurisdiction is granted, proceedings could take months, he said.
"The outcome of this could impact the value of Sibneft," said Chris Weafer, chief strategist at Alfa Bank.
Sibneft-Yugra produces some 8 percent of Sibneft's total oil output, according to Valery Nesterov, an oil and gas analyst at Troika Dialog, who said that the field could be excluded from the deal.
Gazprom has been so open and active in seeking to buy out Sibneft that the gas giant would suffer a serious blow should rivals Rosneft or Surgutneftegaz snap it up at the last moment.
"This has become a question of image after Gazprom's lack of success in merging with Rosneft," Nesterov said, referring to the failed merger between the two energy giants earlier this year.
"It would not be good for them to get into the same situation again. It's become a question of reputation and of how much you can trust the company's management."
"You still can't say it's a cinch," Weafer said. "As we saw in Rosneft, anything is possible right up to the point where the ink is still drying on the page."
NOTICE THAT THE COURT CASE COMMENCED THURSDAY NOT TUESDAY as reported in this article.
What is interesting in this article it suggests that the case in the BVI is to whether or not the BVI courts have jurisdiction - If that all it is about then no result as to the return of the asset will be forthcoming this millenium. Doesn't matter as I have said many times the company is strong enough without it.
BANKONE - 24 Sep 2005 23:40 - 120 of 229
September 23, 2005
Times Online
Abramovich faces court questions
By Steven Downes, Times Online Business Editor
Roman Abramovich, the Russian billionaire oligarch who owns Chelsea Football Club, could be forgiven for beginning to feel that someone is out to get him. Things may have seemed bad enough after one British tabloid today offered 10,000 to the first Premiership footballer to manage to score against his team. But the performance on the pitch of his English league champions has been among the least of Mr Abramovich's worries, as he has spent part of the week in a courtroom in the British Virgin Islands, accused of fraud over ownership of a half-share in a $4 billion Russian oil field.
At the heart of the ownership dispute is a joint venture between the AIM-listed Sibir Energy and Sibneft, the oil firm controlled by Mr Abramovich and reckoned to be worth up to $14 billion, which this week has been the subject of takeover talk involving Gazprom, the state-owned Russian gas producer.
Sibir accuses Sibneft of misappropriating assets worth up to $2 billion by unlawfully increasing its stake in the joint venture, Sibneft Yugra, through affiliate companies and reducing Sibir's stake from 50 per cent to less than 1 per cent.
The companies set up Sibneft Yugra in 2000 in order to develop the west Siberian oil field of South Priobskoye. But Sibir claims that in late 2002, Sibneft executives, without Sibir's knowledge, increased the number of shares in the joint venture by a multiple of ten. The new shares were transferred to three offshore companies, one registered in Panama City, and two others registered in the BVI. As a result, Sibir's holding was diluted to just 5 per cent.
Sibir further claims that five months later, in February 2003, even this residual holding was diluted further: by multiplying the new shares by five, Sibir's holding of the company of which they were once equal partners was reduced to less than 1 per cent. The offshore companies holding the new shares then sold these to three other companies, registered in Cyprus and BVI.
The chief executive of Sibir, Henry Cameron, told one newspaper this week that his company had been given no notice that the meetings were being held or that new shares were about to be issued. "We believe this was a fraud on us to deliberately deprive us of half our company," he said.
It would have cost around $16,000 to buy the shares to maintain a stake in a very important oil joint venture worth up to $2bn. It is ridiculous to believe we simply chose not to take up our rights
Henry Cameron, CEO of Sibir Energy
"It would have cost around $16,000 to buy the shares to maintain a stake in a very important oil joint venture worth up to $2 billion. It is ridiculous to believe we simply chose not to take up our rights."
Two months ago, the court in Tortola ordered a freeze on trading in a 49 per cent stake in the Anglo-Russian oil firm pending further hearings. The court case was brought by Sibir in the Caribbean because of the registrations of four of the six companies subject to their complaint.
After failing in its legal claims in Russia, Sibir has pursued Sibneft to the British Virgin Islands, which operates under the English legal system, and which could, if it finds against Mr Abramovich, enforce its decision in the UK, where Mr Abramovich owns homes in Lowndes Square, Belgravia, and Petersfield, Hampshire, as well as the Stamford Bridge football ground, and a business, Millhouse Capital, which appears to control many of the oligarch's business interests.
Four of the companies listed in the BVI court order are Gregory Trading, Richard Enterprises, Shaw Invest & Finance, and Carroll Trading. All are said to be located at the same address - Trident Chambers, Wickhams Cay, Road Town in Tortola. The court order appointed an independent receiver to take over the shares of three of the BVI companies that are part of the fraud claim. The other companies, including entities registered in Cyprus and Panama, as well as Mr Abramovich himself, were ordered not to make any move to shift the shares outside the BVI courts jurisdiction, or the control of the companies that presently hold them.
John Mann, Mr Abramovichs spokesman, was reported to dismiss the legal claims, saying "any attempt to drag Mr Abramovich into litigation would be misguided, since he is not on Sibnefts board and had no role in its dealings with Sibir", and thus only adding further mystery to the structure and governance of the companies apparently owned by the Russian.
What is not in dispute is that Sibir and Sibneft were equal 50 per cent stakeholders in Sibneft Yugra, where Sibneft was to fund the development and Sibir and its Russian operating company, Yugraneft, were to repay Sibneft, and then share the proceeds of oil sales equally. However, according to Sibir, Mr Abramovich, his associate David Davidovich, and their subordinates secretly converted Sibirs and Yugranefts stakes into holdings of the BVI companies and others.
Mr Mann has said that "everything that Sibir has done related to Sibneft Yugra has been within the framework of a set of agreements between our shareholders and their shareholders". Mr Cameron was reported in a Moscow newspaper in July as saying this is "all nonsense. We would like them to disclose to us what those agreements are".
In order to rule on Mr Abramovichs defence, Judge Indra Charles has ordered the Abramovich companies to produce the agreements in court. The court order also instructed the companies to reveal "when, from whom and for what consideration it acquired the interest in the share capital of Sibneft-Yugra presently registered in its name". In addition, the companies were also ordered to hand over their banking details.
Although Sibneft makes its financial accounts public, the others do not. It is this element which has required Mr Abramovich's attendance in court this week.
Crucially, if forced to comply with the court, the elaborate system through which Mr Abramovich directs billions of dollars of oil revenues will be exposed for the first time.
"We have not acted in any way illegally," Mr Mann said. "All the court cases so far have confirmed that."
The British Virgin Islands case could be a blow for Gazprom, which even has the backing of President Vladimir Putin to take a potentially controlling stake in Sibneft, Russia's fifth largest oil producer.
Roman Abramovich has made his millions and he just doesn't want to keep having to turn up for shareholder meetings
Kremline watcher
Yesterday, Gazprom received formal confirmation of approval from a consortium of western banks of a $12 billion loan - the largest in Russian history - which is believed to be intended towards payment for a controlling 72 per cent stake in Sibneft. Gazprom is believed to have offered $7 billion, while its owners maintain it could be worth twice that amount, with its shares this week trading at $3.55.
Yet the BVI high court may have an impact there. "This court case could impede the potential sale of a controlling stake in Sibneft to Gazprom," the research department of Russia's Alfa Bank said in a written note yesterday.
It would not be the first time that Mr Abramovich has been foiled in what appears to be his own, personal, multibillion-dollar exit strategy from Russia, where his former fellow oil oligarch, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, once the country's richest man, is now consigned to a Moscow jail, stripped of all his former assets.
Mr Abramovich had at one stage been trying to sell Sibneft to Khodorovsky's Yukos oil firm, a deal which collapsed with its owner's arrest on tax evasion charges in 2003. Earlier overtures to western oil concerns Total, Exxon and Chevron by Mr Abramovich also failed to materialise.
Any Gazprom deal would give the Kremlin effective control over about one-third of Russia's oil, confirming long-held suspicions that Russia is keen to renationalise previously state-owned enterprises.
But some analysts disagree. "This whole thing about Russia renationalising has been overblown," said one, a confirmed member of the group that believes Mr Abramovich is looking to liquidate his Russian assets.
"Roman Abramovich has made his millions and he just doesn't want to keep having to turn up for shareholder meetings."
Times Online
Abramovich faces court questions
By Steven Downes, Times Online Business Editor
Roman Abramovich, the Russian billionaire oligarch who owns Chelsea Football Club, could be forgiven for beginning to feel that someone is out to get him. Things may have seemed bad enough after one British tabloid today offered 10,000 to the first Premiership footballer to manage to score against his team. But the performance on the pitch of his English league champions has been among the least of Mr Abramovich's worries, as he has spent part of the week in a courtroom in the British Virgin Islands, accused of fraud over ownership of a half-share in a $4 billion Russian oil field.
At the heart of the ownership dispute is a joint venture between the AIM-listed Sibir Energy and Sibneft, the oil firm controlled by Mr Abramovich and reckoned to be worth up to $14 billion, which this week has been the subject of takeover talk involving Gazprom, the state-owned Russian gas producer.
Sibir accuses Sibneft of misappropriating assets worth up to $2 billion by unlawfully increasing its stake in the joint venture, Sibneft Yugra, through affiliate companies and reducing Sibir's stake from 50 per cent to less than 1 per cent.
The companies set up Sibneft Yugra in 2000 in order to develop the west Siberian oil field of South Priobskoye. But Sibir claims that in late 2002, Sibneft executives, without Sibir's knowledge, increased the number of shares in the joint venture by a multiple of ten. The new shares were transferred to three offshore companies, one registered in Panama City, and two others registered in the BVI. As a result, Sibir's holding was diluted to just 5 per cent.
Sibir further claims that five months later, in February 2003, even this residual holding was diluted further: by multiplying the new shares by five, Sibir's holding of the company of which they were once equal partners was reduced to less than 1 per cent. The offshore companies holding the new shares then sold these to three other companies, registered in Cyprus and BVI.
The chief executive of Sibir, Henry Cameron, told one newspaper this week that his company had been given no notice that the meetings were being held or that new shares were about to be issued. "We believe this was a fraud on us to deliberately deprive us of half our company," he said.
It would have cost around $16,000 to buy the shares to maintain a stake in a very important oil joint venture worth up to $2bn. It is ridiculous to believe we simply chose not to take up our rights
Henry Cameron, CEO of Sibir Energy
"It would have cost around $16,000 to buy the shares to maintain a stake in a very important oil joint venture worth up to $2 billion. It is ridiculous to believe we simply chose not to take up our rights."
Two months ago, the court in Tortola ordered a freeze on trading in a 49 per cent stake in the Anglo-Russian oil firm pending further hearings. The court case was brought by Sibir in the Caribbean because of the registrations of four of the six companies subject to their complaint.
After failing in its legal claims in Russia, Sibir has pursued Sibneft to the British Virgin Islands, which operates under the English legal system, and which could, if it finds against Mr Abramovich, enforce its decision in the UK, where Mr Abramovich owns homes in Lowndes Square, Belgravia, and Petersfield, Hampshire, as well as the Stamford Bridge football ground, and a business, Millhouse Capital, which appears to control many of the oligarch's business interests.
Four of the companies listed in the BVI court order are Gregory Trading, Richard Enterprises, Shaw Invest & Finance, and Carroll Trading. All are said to be located at the same address - Trident Chambers, Wickhams Cay, Road Town in Tortola. The court order appointed an independent receiver to take over the shares of three of the BVI companies that are part of the fraud claim. The other companies, including entities registered in Cyprus and Panama, as well as Mr Abramovich himself, were ordered not to make any move to shift the shares outside the BVI courts jurisdiction, or the control of the companies that presently hold them.
John Mann, Mr Abramovichs spokesman, was reported to dismiss the legal claims, saying "any attempt to drag Mr Abramovich into litigation would be misguided, since he is not on Sibnefts board and had no role in its dealings with Sibir", and thus only adding further mystery to the structure and governance of the companies apparently owned by the Russian.
What is not in dispute is that Sibir and Sibneft were equal 50 per cent stakeholders in Sibneft Yugra, where Sibneft was to fund the development and Sibir and its Russian operating company, Yugraneft, were to repay Sibneft, and then share the proceeds of oil sales equally. However, according to Sibir, Mr Abramovich, his associate David Davidovich, and their subordinates secretly converted Sibirs and Yugranefts stakes into holdings of the BVI companies and others.
Mr Mann has said that "everything that Sibir has done related to Sibneft Yugra has been within the framework of a set of agreements between our shareholders and their shareholders". Mr Cameron was reported in a Moscow newspaper in July as saying this is "all nonsense. We would like them to disclose to us what those agreements are".
In order to rule on Mr Abramovichs defence, Judge Indra Charles has ordered the Abramovich companies to produce the agreements in court. The court order also instructed the companies to reveal "when, from whom and for what consideration it acquired the interest in the share capital of Sibneft-Yugra presently registered in its name". In addition, the companies were also ordered to hand over their banking details.
Although Sibneft makes its financial accounts public, the others do not. It is this element which has required Mr Abramovich's attendance in court this week.
Crucially, if forced to comply with the court, the elaborate system through which Mr Abramovich directs billions of dollars of oil revenues will be exposed for the first time.
"We have not acted in any way illegally," Mr Mann said. "All the court cases so far have confirmed that."
The British Virgin Islands case could be a blow for Gazprom, which even has the backing of President Vladimir Putin to take a potentially controlling stake in Sibneft, Russia's fifth largest oil producer.
Roman Abramovich has made his millions and he just doesn't want to keep having to turn up for shareholder meetings
Kremline watcher
Yesterday, Gazprom received formal confirmation of approval from a consortium of western banks of a $12 billion loan - the largest in Russian history - which is believed to be intended towards payment for a controlling 72 per cent stake in Sibneft. Gazprom is believed to have offered $7 billion, while its owners maintain it could be worth twice that amount, with its shares this week trading at $3.55.
Yet the BVI high court may have an impact there. "This court case could impede the potential sale of a controlling stake in Sibneft to Gazprom," the research department of Russia's Alfa Bank said in a written note yesterday.
It would not be the first time that Mr Abramovich has been foiled in what appears to be his own, personal, multibillion-dollar exit strategy from Russia, where his former fellow oil oligarch, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, once the country's richest man, is now consigned to a Moscow jail, stripped of all his former assets.
Mr Abramovich had at one stage been trying to sell Sibneft to Khodorovsky's Yukos oil firm, a deal which collapsed with its owner's arrest on tax evasion charges in 2003. Earlier overtures to western oil concerns Total, Exxon and Chevron by Mr Abramovich also failed to materialise.
Any Gazprom deal would give the Kremlin effective control over about one-third of Russia's oil, confirming long-held suspicions that Russia is keen to renationalise previously state-owned enterprises.
But some analysts disagree. "This whole thing about Russia renationalising has been overblown," said one, a confirmed member of the group that believes Mr Abramovich is looking to liquidate his Russian assets.
"Roman Abramovich has made his millions and he just doesn't want to keep having to turn up for shareholder meetings."
BANKONE - 25 Sep 2005 20:49 - 121 of 229
Old news but relevant. Found whilst searching for update re BVI hearing as above
again from Times online. What is interesting in this article is the list of compalinants? including Sibir. Listed as bold and underlined
July 18, 2005
Court freezes Abramovich joint venture
By Times Online
A British Virgin Islands court has frozen trading in a 49 per cent stake in a British-Russian oil firm being fought over by Roman Abramovichs Sibneft and rival firm Sibir Energy.
The court ordered the freezing of the stake in the joint venture, Sibneft Yugra, pending a further court hearing to take place by July 27.
Sibir Energy has accused Sibneft, which is controlled by Mr Abramovich, who also owns Chelsea football club, of misappropriating assets worth up to $2 billion by unlawfully increasing its stake in Sibneft Yugra by selling shares to affiliate companies.
Sibir Energy claims its stake in the company was reduced from 50 per cent to less than 1 per cent between 2002 and 2003. The companies set up Sibneft Yugra in 2000 in order to develop the vast Siberian oil fields of South Priobskoye.
"We have started proceedings in the British Virgin Islands because British Virgin Islands companies have been used as vehicles," Sibir Energys chief executive, Henry Cameron, said.
The British Virgin Islands court ordered Sibneft and Mr Abramovich to maintain assets of at least $1 billion dollars until the freeze had been carried out by a receiver.
Sibir shareholders, led by Russian billionaire and 51 per cent owner Chalva Tchigirinski, have been fighting to regain the property they claim is still theirs, and have secured the backing of the court to have the case heard. Sibneft insists it acquired the stake by entirely legitimate means.
Mr Tchigirinski told The Sunday Times: "This is war. And it is one that Abramovich declared on me. We have evidence of wrongdoing. We need to repossess our property.
"Russia needs to build normal transparency and gain investor confidence. Im taking on this fight not just for my sake but for Russias too."
Sibir has emphasised that it, not just Mr Tchigirinski, is making the allegations and fighting Mr Abramovich.
The court order was secured on behalf of City institutions including M&G, the investment arm of Prudential, and RAB Capital, the AIM-quoted hedge-fund manager.
The British Virgin Islands case could also be a blow for Russias Gazprom, which had planned to buy a stake in Sibneft, the countrys fifth largest oil producer.
"This court case could impede the potential sale of a controlling stake in Sibneft to Gazprom," the research department of Russias Alfa Bank said.
"We wont comment on the specifics of ongoing litigation. We will address this issue in the courts," John Mann, Sibneft's spokesman, told AFP, adding that Sibir Energy had lost three court cases against Sibneft in Russia in the past two weeks.
The dispute is likely to throw light Mr Abramovichs business career. The billionaire will be asked to deliver to the court a full list of his assets, making public for the first time the extent and details of his wealth both in Britain and Russia.
again from Times online. What is interesting in this article is the list of compalinants? including Sibir. Listed as bold and underlined
July 18, 2005
Court freezes Abramovich joint venture
By Times Online
A British Virgin Islands court has frozen trading in a 49 per cent stake in a British-Russian oil firm being fought over by Roman Abramovichs Sibneft and rival firm Sibir Energy.
The court ordered the freezing of the stake in the joint venture, Sibneft Yugra, pending a further court hearing to take place by July 27.
Sibir Energy has accused Sibneft, which is controlled by Mr Abramovich, who also owns Chelsea football club, of misappropriating assets worth up to $2 billion by unlawfully increasing its stake in Sibneft Yugra by selling shares to affiliate companies.
Sibir Energy claims its stake in the company was reduced from 50 per cent to less than 1 per cent between 2002 and 2003. The companies set up Sibneft Yugra in 2000 in order to develop the vast Siberian oil fields of South Priobskoye.
"We have started proceedings in the British Virgin Islands because British Virgin Islands companies have been used as vehicles," Sibir Energys chief executive, Henry Cameron, said.
The British Virgin Islands court ordered Sibneft and Mr Abramovich to maintain assets of at least $1 billion dollars until the freeze had been carried out by a receiver.
Sibir shareholders, led by Russian billionaire and 51 per cent owner Chalva Tchigirinski, have been fighting to regain the property they claim is still theirs, and have secured the backing of the court to have the case heard. Sibneft insists it acquired the stake by entirely legitimate means.
Mr Tchigirinski told The Sunday Times: "This is war. And it is one that Abramovich declared on me. We have evidence of wrongdoing. We need to repossess our property.
"Russia needs to build normal transparency and gain investor confidence. Im taking on this fight not just for my sake but for Russias too."
Sibir has emphasised that it, not just Mr Tchigirinski, is making the allegations and fighting Mr Abramovich.
The court order was secured on behalf of City institutions including M&G, the investment arm of Prudential, and RAB Capital, the AIM-quoted hedge-fund manager.
The British Virgin Islands case could also be a blow for Russias Gazprom, which had planned to buy a stake in Sibneft, the countrys fifth largest oil producer.
"This court case could impede the potential sale of a controlling stake in Sibneft to Gazprom," the research department of Russias Alfa Bank said.
"We wont comment on the specifics of ongoing litigation. We will address this issue in the courts," John Mann, Sibneft's spokesman, told AFP, adding that Sibir Energy had lost three court cases against Sibneft in Russia in the past two weeks.
The dispute is likely to throw light Mr Abramovichs business career. The billionaire will be asked to deliver to the court a full list of his assets, making public for the first time the extent and details of his wealth both in Britain and Russia.
BANKONE - 25 Sep 2005 21:04 - 122 of 229
From the Independent on Sunday
Oil-row businessman aims to score against Chelsea owner
By Greg Harkin
Published: 25 September 2005
Chelsea may be sitting pretty at the top of the Premiership with a record-breaking 100 per cent record, but the Champions of England could face their greatest challenge yet: from an angry Scottish businessman.
Henry Cameron, a 65-year-old former solicitor, could knock Chelsea off their perch if he succeeds in a legal action seeking 500m from a business associated with the club's super-rich owner, Roman Abramovich. He claims that the Russian was involved in share deals that cost him a 50 per cent stake in a 1bn Siberian oil fields venture.
Instead of making his fortune, he says, he ended up with 1 per cent of the business, after directors of the Russian firm Sibneft issued thousands of new shares in the business to their own subsidiary companies.
The Scot is a director of Russian-owned Sibir, which struck a deal with Sibneftto jointly develop oil fields in Siberia.
Mr Abramovich is named in a lawsuit launched by Mr Cameron's company in the British Virgin Islands, where the case is being heard because a number of co-accused firms are registered there.
Mr Abramovich's spokes-man, John Mann, insisted his boss had acted legitimately.
Chelsea may be sitting pretty at the top of the Premiership with a record-breaking 100 per cent record, but the Champions of England could face their greatest challenge yet: from an angry Scottish businessman.
Henry Cameron, a 65-year-old former solicitor, could knock Chelsea off their perch if he succeeds in a legal action seeking 500m from a business associated with the club's super-rich owner, Roman Abramovich. He claims that the Russian was involved in share deals that cost him a 50 per cent stake in a 1bn Siberian oil fields venture.
Instead of making his fortune, he says, he ended up with 1 per cent of the business, after directors of the Russian firm Sibneft issued thousands of new shares in the business to their own subsidiary companies.
The Scot is a director of Russian-owned Sibir, which struck a deal with Sibneftto jointly develop oil fields in Siberia.
Mr Abramovich is named in a lawsuit launched by Mr Cameron's company in the British Virgin Islands, where the case is being heard because a number of co-accused firms are registered there.
Mr Abramovich's spokes-man, John Mann, insisted his boss had acted legitimately.
Another Sunday Article
From Scotland on Sunday on line
Former Aberdeen solicitor to sue Abramovich for oil 'fraud'
NICHOLAS CHRISTIAN
SUPER-RICH Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich is to fight a legal claim from a former Aberdeen solicitor over a half share in a 1bn Siberian oil fields venture.
Henry Cameron, now the boss of an oil firm headquartered in the Caribbean, accuses Abramovich of involvement in share deals which cost Cameron his 50% stake in the deal.
The Aberdonian claims directors of the Russian's firm, Sibneft, issued thousands of new shares in the business to their own subsidiary companies.
Cameron, 65, alleges that the new issues reduced his firm's stake in the project from half to just 1%.
The Scot is a director of Russian-owned Sibir, which struck a deal with Sibneft five years ago to jointly develop two huge oil fields in Siberia.
Abramovich is named in a lawsuit launched by Cameron's company in the British Virgin Islands, where the case is being heard because a number of co-accused firms are registered there.
The oligarch and three companies controlled by Sibneft are named in the legal action at the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, where judges are expected to give their verdict soon.
Abramovich's spokesman, John Mann, said his boss had acted legitimately.
Speaking from Johannesburg, Mann said: "Everything with regards to our participation in the Sibneft transfer was legal and above board. We are happy to settle this matter through the courts rather than through the press.
"It was a 50-50 joint venture initially; however, through a series of events we came to control an additional 49% of it.
"It was all completely legal, we funded every dime of the project, we brought in all the technology.
"This case has failed at several courts in Russia, now it is being heard in the British Virgin Islands and we expect to prevail again."
Russian oil has made Abramovich one of the world's richest men. He has an estimated personal fortune of 7.5bn and has poured more than 700m into Chelsea FC.
The Russian is not a director of Sibneft but is part of a group of core shareholders who own 72% of the oil giant.
Cameron moved into the Russian oil business after working as a senior partner at Peterkins Solicitors in Aberdeen.
He was unavailable for comment yesterday but said last week: "We believe this was a fraud on us to deliberately deprive us of half our company.
"I work in Russia so I am used to the difficulties. But I had a feeling of almost disbelief at the way this was done."
Abramovich lost both parents before he was four years old and was adopted by his uncle. He dropped out of college in Moscow in the 1980s before making his first fortune through oil deals in the early 1990s, as many Russians took advantage of the artificially high value of the rouble and the hasty privatisations which followed the collapse of communism. The main source of this wealth comes from being one of the major shareholders in Sibneft, one of the biggest companies in the world's largest country.
Abramovich also had significant interests in Russia's aluminium industry and until recently owned a sizeable stake in Russian airline Aeroflot, the sale of which may have funded the Chelsea buyout.
Although many others who made it rich in 1990s Russia have since fallen foul of the Russian authorities - including some who have been forced into exile in the west, or been tried under allegations of tax irregularities - Abramovich has managed to survive unscathed, buying up stakes in the main Russian TV channel ORT and surviving investigations into allegations of shady dealings.
The tycoon has also dabbled in politics. In 1999, he was elected to the lower house of the Russian parliament, the State Duma.
He is also the governor of the remote province of Chukotka in the north-east of Russia, directly across the Bering Strait from Alaska.
From B1 All we need now is a home win (Judgement re Fraud after all I can't see Mr A disclosing his connections with the Russian Hierarchy so they may fold)or a scoring draw (BVI Courts verdict maybe that they will have jurisdiction and be able to hear the full case then it will be who can tell the best jokes without laughing and I don't think that the comedian in the pack is HC - he means business). Tomorrow and Tuesday is going to be an interesting couple of days culminating in the best day of all Friday - Strong interims.
(I'm going to risk a further 10000 on a T10 to top up 1st thing Mon)
Good luck to everyone. DMOR and going4it.
Oil-row businessman aims to score against Chelsea owner
By Greg Harkin
Published: 25 September 2005
Chelsea may be sitting pretty at the top of the Premiership with a record-breaking 100 per cent record, but the Champions of England could face their greatest challenge yet: from an angry Scottish businessman.
Henry Cameron, a 65-year-old former solicitor, could knock Chelsea off their perch if he succeeds in a legal action seeking 500m from a business associated with the club's super-rich owner, Roman Abramovich. He claims that the Russian was involved in share deals that cost him a 50 per cent stake in a 1bn Siberian oil fields venture.
Instead of making his fortune, he says, he ended up with 1 per cent of the business, after directors of the Russian firm Sibneft issued thousands of new shares in the business to their own subsidiary companies.
The Scot is a director of Russian-owned Sibir, which struck a deal with Sibneftto jointly develop oil fields in Siberia.
Mr Abramovich is named in a lawsuit launched by Mr Cameron's company in the British Virgin Islands, where the case is being heard because a number of co-accused firms are registered there.
Mr Abramovich's spokes-man, John Mann, insisted his boss had acted legitimately.
Chelsea may be sitting pretty at the top of the Premiership with a record-breaking 100 per cent record, but the Champions of England could face their greatest challenge yet: from an angry Scottish businessman.
Henry Cameron, a 65-year-old former solicitor, could knock Chelsea off their perch if he succeeds in a legal action seeking 500m from a business associated with the club's super-rich owner, Roman Abramovich. He claims that the Russian was involved in share deals that cost him a 50 per cent stake in a 1bn Siberian oil fields venture.
Instead of making his fortune, he says, he ended up with 1 per cent of the business, after directors of the Russian firm Sibneft issued thousands of new shares in the business to their own subsidiary companies.
The Scot is a director of Russian-owned Sibir, which struck a deal with Sibneftto jointly develop oil fields in Siberia.
Mr Abramovich is named in a lawsuit launched by Mr Cameron's company in the British Virgin Islands, where the case is being heard because a number of co-accused firms are registered there.
Mr Abramovich's spokes-man, John Mann, insisted his boss had acted legitimately.
Another Sunday Article
From Scotland on Sunday on line
Former Aberdeen solicitor to sue Abramovich for oil 'fraud'
NICHOLAS CHRISTIAN
SUPER-RICH Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich is to fight a legal claim from a former Aberdeen solicitor over a half share in a 1bn Siberian oil fields venture.
Henry Cameron, now the boss of an oil firm headquartered in the Caribbean, accuses Abramovich of involvement in share deals which cost Cameron his 50% stake in the deal.
The Aberdonian claims directors of the Russian's firm, Sibneft, issued thousands of new shares in the business to their own subsidiary companies.
Cameron, 65, alleges that the new issues reduced his firm's stake in the project from half to just 1%.
The Scot is a director of Russian-owned Sibir, which struck a deal with Sibneft five years ago to jointly develop two huge oil fields in Siberia.
Abramovich is named in a lawsuit launched by Cameron's company in the British Virgin Islands, where the case is being heard because a number of co-accused firms are registered there.
The oligarch and three companies controlled by Sibneft are named in the legal action at the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, where judges are expected to give their verdict soon.
Abramovich's spokesman, John Mann, said his boss had acted legitimately.
Speaking from Johannesburg, Mann said: "Everything with regards to our participation in the Sibneft transfer was legal and above board. We are happy to settle this matter through the courts rather than through the press.
"It was a 50-50 joint venture initially; however, through a series of events we came to control an additional 49% of it.
"It was all completely legal, we funded every dime of the project, we brought in all the technology.
"This case has failed at several courts in Russia, now it is being heard in the British Virgin Islands and we expect to prevail again."
Russian oil has made Abramovich one of the world's richest men. He has an estimated personal fortune of 7.5bn and has poured more than 700m into Chelsea FC.
The Russian is not a director of Sibneft but is part of a group of core shareholders who own 72% of the oil giant.
Cameron moved into the Russian oil business after working as a senior partner at Peterkins Solicitors in Aberdeen.
He was unavailable for comment yesterday but said last week: "We believe this was a fraud on us to deliberately deprive us of half our company.
"I work in Russia so I am used to the difficulties. But I had a feeling of almost disbelief at the way this was done."
Abramovich lost both parents before he was four years old and was adopted by his uncle. He dropped out of college in Moscow in the 1980s before making his first fortune through oil deals in the early 1990s, as many Russians took advantage of the artificially high value of the rouble and the hasty privatisations which followed the collapse of communism. The main source of this wealth comes from being one of the major shareholders in Sibneft, one of the biggest companies in the world's largest country.
Abramovich also had significant interests in Russia's aluminium industry and until recently owned a sizeable stake in Russian airline Aeroflot, the sale of which may have funded the Chelsea buyout.
Although many others who made it rich in 1990s Russia have since fallen foul of the Russian authorities - including some who have been forced into exile in the west, or been tried under allegations of tax irregularities - Abramovich has managed to survive unscathed, buying up stakes in the main Russian TV channel ORT and surviving investigations into allegations of shady dealings.
The tycoon has also dabbled in politics. In 1999, he was elected to the lower house of the Russian parliament, the State Duma.
He is also the governor of the remote province of Chukotka in the north-east of Russia, directly across the Bering Strait from Alaska.
From B1 All we need now is a home win (Judgement re Fraud after all I can't see Mr A disclosing his connections with the Russian Hierarchy so they may fold)or a scoring draw (BVI Courts verdict maybe that they will have jurisdiction and be able to hear the full case then it will be who can tell the best jokes without laughing and I don't think that the comedian in the pack is HC - he means business). Tomorrow and Tuesday is going to be an interesting couple of days culminating in the best day of all Friday - Strong interims.
(I'm going to risk a further 10000 on a T10 to top up 1st thing Mon)
Good luck to everyone. DMOR and going4it.
Sunray41
- 25 Sep 2005 22:32
- 123 of 229
Looks like an out of Court settlement to me .
Too many people going to be compromised.
Too many people going to be compromised.
BANKONE - 26 Sep 2005 21:43 - 124 of 229
Duff Gen from another BB - sorry. I removed the Post as it was wrong. However why have there been a 4:1 sale:buy ratio today knowing that strong interims are about to be released along with other good news. Anyone who is selling now must be in the know re BVI or strapped for cash.
BANKONE - 27 Sep 2005 21:57 - 125 of 229
Comeon fellow posters anyone still interested. Found this whilst surfing other BB's Strong buys late afternoon pulled back the deficit to a half penny drop. This WARNING from HC is a pep up ahead of the results due Friday. I think for the Gazprom/Sibneft deal to go ahead one of two things may occur.
1) Mr A and his coniving Cronies capitulate and give SIBIR adequate compensation for the theft of their asset
2) Gazprom pay over 1,200,000,000 pounds or so for SIBIR and be done with it, Gazprom can then sort the problem out 'Inhouse'
I favour no 2 as it keeps Mr P and the K out of it, no embarrasment, it virtually doubles the SP of SIBIR keeping the PI and Inst happy.
Anyone out there favour any other possibility. Figures will be due out in Russian time friday probably around Midday give or take an hour or so and I can feel 4.50 pound a share coming on quite easily. Anybody out there that can read the graphs etc and if so what do they say ( or is it just like reading T leaves). 62 hours to figures. Virtually all OIL companies reporting have shown strong top lines this year so far.
Good luck to all.
NEWS
27/09/2005
Sibir Puts Western Banks on Notice in Sibneft-Yugra Affair
Sibir CEO, Henry Cameron, has written letters to the General Legal Counsels of several prominent western banks believed to be financing Gazproms bid to acquire Sibneft to put them on notice that Sibir will pursue its claims against Sibneft regardless of any change of ownership of that company. Mr. Cameron further warns the banks of undertakings that Sibneft has made to the court in the British Virgin Islands. The text of the letter is published below.
Dear Sirs
Dilution of Sibir Energy Plc's ("Sibir") interest in Sibneft-Yugra
I write in my capacity as CEO of Sibir. I understand from recent media coverage that Gazprom may be close to agreeing a deal to purchase Sibneft and that your bank may be involved in providing finance for the deal. Whilst I am only too aware that such rumours may be without substance or may come to nothing, it is important that you are aware that Sibir has brought proceedings against, among others, Sibneft in the British Virgin Islands in respect of assets valued at between $1.2 billion and $2.1 billion.
Sibir's claim against Sibneft arises out of a joint venture agreement entered into in November 2000 in relation to the development and exploration of oil fields, namely the Palyanovskoye and the south part of the Priobskoye Fields (the "Fields"). The development of the Fields was to take place through a joint venture vehicle called Sibneft Yugra. Sibir held its beneficial interest in Sibneft Yugra through its subsidiary, Yugraneft.
On 28 September 2002 and 4 February 2003, the Board and members of Sibneft Yugra apparently resolved to increase the issued share capital of Sibneft Yugra. Additional shares were allotted to offshore companies, believed to be beneficially owned by Sibneft, and to Sibneft, but not to Yugraneft. The cumulative effect was to dilute Sibir's beneficial interest in Sibneft Yugra from 50 per cent. to less than one per cent.
Sibir commenced proceedings in the BVI on 13 July 2005. Sibir's claim is that the above actions were a crude fraud perpetrated by Sibneft on Sibir, by which Sibneft gained a very substantial benefit. Sibir's claim is that, in committing the fraud, Sibneft breached fiduciary obligations which it owed to Sibir pursuant to the joint venture agreement. Evidence has been filed by each side and a hearing has been fixed for 19 September 2005 with an estimate of three days at which the issue of BVI Court jurisdiction will be determined.
Your bank should be aware that, by way of a confidential schedule to an Order dated 21 July 2005, various undertakings have been given by the Defendants. We would expect your bank to confirm with Sibneft that any prospective deal would not amount to a breach of such undertakings.
Sibir considers, on advice, that its case against the Defendants is exceptionally strong and that Sibneft's various explanations for the dilution are completely nonsensical and will be rejected by the Courts. We have already written to Gazprom in order to put them on notice as a prospective purchaser. Sibir's claims against Sibneft will continue regardless of any changes in the ownership of that company. As matters currently stand, because Sibneft has refused to recognise the validity of Sibir's claims, the assets of the Sibneft group are overstated to the value of our claim (i.e. between $1.2 and $2.1 billion).
Yours faithfully
Henry Cameron
1) Mr A and his coniving Cronies capitulate and give SIBIR adequate compensation for the theft of their asset
2) Gazprom pay over 1,200,000,000 pounds or so for SIBIR and be done with it, Gazprom can then sort the problem out 'Inhouse'
I favour no 2 as it keeps Mr P and the K out of it, no embarrasment, it virtually doubles the SP of SIBIR keeping the PI and Inst happy.
Anyone out there favour any other possibility. Figures will be due out in Russian time friday probably around Midday give or take an hour or so and I can feel 4.50 pound a share coming on quite easily. Anybody out there that can read the graphs etc and if so what do they say ( or is it just like reading T leaves). 62 hours to figures. Virtually all OIL companies reporting have shown strong top lines this year so far.
Good luck to all.
NEWS
27/09/2005
Sibir Puts Western Banks on Notice in Sibneft-Yugra Affair
Sibir CEO, Henry Cameron, has written letters to the General Legal Counsels of several prominent western banks believed to be financing Gazproms bid to acquire Sibneft to put them on notice that Sibir will pursue its claims against Sibneft regardless of any change of ownership of that company. Mr. Cameron further warns the banks of undertakings that Sibneft has made to the court in the British Virgin Islands. The text of the letter is published below.
Dear Sirs
Dilution of Sibir Energy Plc's ("Sibir") interest in Sibneft-Yugra
I write in my capacity as CEO of Sibir. I understand from recent media coverage that Gazprom may be close to agreeing a deal to purchase Sibneft and that your bank may be involved in providing finance for the deal. Whilst I am only too aware that such rumours may be without substance or may come to nothing, it is important that you are aware that Sibir has brought proceedings against, among others, Sibneft in the British Virgin Islands in respect of assets valued at between $1.2 billion and $2.1 billion.
Sibir's claim against Sibneft arises out of a joint venture agreement entered into in November 2000 in relation to the development and exploration of oil fields, namely the Palyanovskoye and the south part of the Priobskoye Fields (the "Fields"). The development of the Fields was to take place through a joint venture vehicle called Sibneft Yugra. Sibir held its beneficial interest in Sibneft Yugra through its subsidiary, Yugraneft.
On 28 September 2002 and 4 February 2003, the Board and members of Sibneft Yugra apparently resolved to increase the issued share capital of Sibneft Yugra. Additional shares were allotted to offshore companies, believed to be beneficially owned by Sibneft, and to Sibneft, but not to Yugraneft. The cumulative effect was to dilute Sibir's beneficial interest in Sibneft Yugra from 50 per cent. to less than one per cent.
Sibir commenced proceedings in the BVI on 13 July 2005. Sibir's claim is that the above actions were a crude fraud perpetrated by Sibneft on Sibir, by which Sibneft gained a very substantial benefit. Sibir's claim is that, in committing the fraud, Sibneft breached fiduciary obligations which it owed to Sibir pursuant to the joint venture agreement. Evidence has been filed by each side and a hearing has been fixed for 19 September 2005 with an estimate of three days at which the issue of BVI Court jurisdiction will be determined.
Your bank should be aware that, by way of a confidential schedule to an Order dated 21 July 2005, various undertakings have been given by the Defendants. We would expect your bank to confirm with Sibneft that any prospective deal would not amount to a breach of such undertakings.
Sibir considers, on advice, that its case against the Defendants is exceptionally strong and that Sibneft's various explanations for the dilution are completely nonsensical and will be rejected by the Courts. We have already written to Gazprom in order to put them on notice as a prospective purchaser. Sibir's claims against Sibneft will continue regardless of any changes in the ownership of that company. As matters currently stand, because Sibneft has refused to recognise the validity of Sibir's claims, the assets of the Sibneft group are overstated to the value of our claim (i.e. between $1.2 and $2.1 billion).
Yours faithfully
Henry Cameron
camiladasi - 27 Sep 2005 22:50 - 126 of 229
B1, what about other possibilities:-
3. BVI court decides it has no jurisdiction
4. BVI court throws out the case because sibneft does have docs showing it acted legally and known/agreed by SBE's main shareholder acting on behalf of the company
5. sibneft decides to battle it out because the it will take years to get a substantive verdict out of BVI and longer for it to be upheld thru appeals and then even more difficult to get the final verdict implemented. in the meantime sbe is spending shed loads of money on legal fees and the shareholders get fed up.
I too think that your option 2 is a strong possibility. but HC will not capitulate easily (got to admire the b@lls on that Scotsman) and there will be issues between russian national government interests and moscow city government interests that might scupper that idea.
WDIK, PDYOR.
camlad
3. BVI court decides it has no jurisdiction
4. BVI court throws out the case because sibneft does have docs showing it acted legally and known/agreed by SBE's main shareholder acting on behalf of the company
5. sibneft decides to battle it out because the it will take years to get a substantive verdict out of BVI and longer for it to be upheld thru appeals and then even more difficult to get the final verdict implemented. in the meantime sbe is spending shed loads of money on legal fees and the shareholders get fed up.
I too think that your option 2 is a strong possibility. but HC will not capitulate easily (got to admire the b@lls on that Scotsman) and there will be issues between russian national government interests and moscow city government interests that might scupper that idea.
WDIK, PDYOR.
camlad
lansdownboy - 28 Sep 2005 12:58 - 127 of 229
wheres the release???
searching web but cannot find anything.
sp on the rise
searching web but cannot find anything.
sp on the rise
BANKONE - 28 Sep 2005 17:49 - 128 of 229
No release but an 11p rise today - Nice. T10 traders on thoughts of strong interims maybe. Can't be many spare shares around though so expect big variances. Chav can't sell any of his so MM's will have to pay big prices come Friday sometime to get the shares they have sold. Good luck.
BANKONE - 30 Sep 2005 13:19 - 129 of 229
Any time now - some strong buying even the 100,000 was a late reported buy.
Tick ups ahead. Good luck
Tick ups ahead. Good luck
mbugger - 30 Sep 2005 14:19 - 130 of 229
How can Gazprom buy Sibneft with BVI/RUSSIA court cases on going,will Sibir be awarded some type settlement,any views B/ONE.
lansdownboy - 30 Sep 2005 15:54 - 131 of 229
80% profits and rising.
Makes all that time waiting through the last 2 years worthwhile.
Still plenty of upside.
Trying to get latest Project Reports from Salym.
Makes all that time waiting through the last 2 years worthwhile.
Still plenty of upside.
Trying to get latest Project Reports from Salym.
camiladasi - 30 Sep 2005 19:36 - 132 of 229
They're big and they're beautiful (SBE's interims, of course).
Monday should be interesting and profitable to all holders.
WDIK, PDYOR.
camlad
Monday should be interesting and profitable to all holders.
WDIK, PDYOR.
camlad
BANKONE - 30 Sep 2005 21:33 - 133 of 229
The last month with Sibir has been great, well worth the long wait. The interims are fantastic, the bottom line is much better than I anticipated. The report outlines a number of on-going work which according to HC (and he can't be faulted) will reap rewards for the shareholders of which I am one for a very long time until at least 2009. This weekend is going to be interesting as all the newspapers will be full of Gazprom, sibneft, Partygaming, 888.com BUT best of all I shall enjoy reading SIBIR - They may sit up and take notice of an OIL GIANT in the making and then after the weekend there won't be any Monday morning blues not even if the price dips a little and yes maybe the Profit line had been factored into the current SP. The result of the BVI hasn't, the conservative reserves haven't, the ongoing and projected programmes haven't - but they will have to be 6 pound by Xmas 2005 and a nice little divi to look forward to in 2007 when the SP will be 15pound plus. DMORMSYDY.
BANKONE - 02 Oct 2005 18:22 - 134 of 229
4pound plus kick off tomorrow morning IMHO -any other guestimates
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