BP dissapointed private investors as the share price slid even though a
Massive 136 percent jump in profits were recorded for the last quarter.
This was already expected and comments from Lord Browne saying falls in oil expected have brought also helped the stock down.
He says can stand oil price even below $16 pb
The hostage situation in Nigeria getting bad maybe BP putting on some weight today?
Locals want enviroment cleaned up and profits shared.
Any chance?

U.S. lays out examples of "gross negligence" by BP

WASHINGTON | Wed Sep 5, 2012 3:32am BST

(Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department is ramping up its rhetoric against BP PLC for the massive 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, describing in new court papers examples of what it calls "gross negligence and wilful misconduct."

The court filing is the sharpest position yet taken by the U.S. government as it seeks to hold the British oil giant largely responsible for the largest oil spill in U.S. history.

Worth a look, IMO

BP in $7 billion asset sale talks with Plains Exploration - source


NEW YORK | Mon Sep 10, 2012 3:32am BST
(Reuters) - BP is in talks to sell some of its Gulf of Mexico oil fields to Plains Exploration & Production Co for roughly $7 billion (4.3 billion pounds), a person familiar with the matter said on Sunday, as the U.K. oil firm looks to raise money to pay for damages from the 2010 oil spill.

The amount BP will have to pay in damages for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill -- America's worst ever -- is still in dispute. But last month the U.S. Justice Department accused the company of gross negligence and wilful misconduct over the spill, a position that could lead to nearly $21 billion in civil damages if a federal judge agrees.

BP and Russian Rosneft close to TNK-BP stake sale deal

BP, the British oil giant, is reportedly close to selling its 50% stake in Russian joint venture TNK-BP to Rosneft, the state-owned oil company.

Under the terms of the deal, BP would take a 12.5% stake in Rosneft worth about $10bn (£6.2bn) plus $15bn in cash, said Russian newpaper Kommersant.

BP and Rosneft are keen to explore the Russian Arctic for oil together.

On Tuesday, Russian President Vladmir Putin held talks with both firms.

But a BP spokesman told the BBC: "Talks with all interested parties are continuing. No formal offers have been received, so any figures being bandied about are pure speculation at this stage."

According to other reports, Rosneft has been sounding out US banks for loans to finance the deal.

TNK-BP co-owners to bid for entire BP stake - source

MOSCOW | Wed Sep 26, 2012 7:43am BST

(Reuters) - The billionaire quartet that owns half of Anglo-Russian oil firm TNK-BP (TNBP.MM) is interested in buying out BP's 50 percent stake, and will make a binding all-cash offer by mid-October, a source familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

"We will pay cash, but have not yet determined the price," the source, who is close to the AAR consortium that represents shareholders Mikhail Fridman, German Khan, Viktor Vekselberg and Len Blavatnik.

AAR had said it was willing to pay $10 billion for a 25 percent stake in TNK-BP, Russia's third-largest oil company. BP, which put its stake up for sale in June, was not interested in that offer, sources said.

TNK-BP co-owners to bid for entire BP stake

MOSCOW | Wed Sep 26, 2012 7:21pm BST

(Reuters) - The billionaires who own half of Russian oil firm TNK-BP plan to make a cash offer for BP's 50 percent stake, raising the prospect of a bid contest with state-backed Rosneft that would start at around $20 billion.

Such an auction would pit the four Soviet-born tycoons, who amassed their assets in the chaotic 1990s, against Rosneft's chief executive Igor Sechin, a confidant of President Vladimir Putin who wants to build his company into a national champion.

Oil sheen near Deepwater Horizon site from Macondo, US says

HOUSTON | Thu Oct 11, 2012 4:21pm BST

(Reuters) - An oil sheen spotted on the Gulf of Mexico near the site of the sunken Deepwater Horizon rig matches samples from BP Plc's (BP.L) ill-fated Macondo well, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

BP reported a sheen on September 16 in block 252 of the Mississippi Canyon, about 50 miles (80 km) off the Louisiana coast. Test samples indicate that "the sheen correlates to oil that originated from BP's Macondo Well", the Coast Guard said in a statement late on Wednesday.

Swiss-based Transocean Ltd (RIG.N) owned the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and London-based BP was the operator of the Macondo well, which ruptured on April 20, 2010, killing 11 workers and unleashing the worst U.S. offshore oil spill. BP and Transocean had no immediate comment on the sheen.

I can't believe BP share is only 430p.

TNK-BP: oligarchs sell out [report]

Sky News reported that AAR, the three oligarchs’ consortium company, had agreed a $28bn deal for their half of the venture. If confirmed, that would bring BP and Rosneft together in a partnership – and leave BP free to pursue other projects in Russia. But Sky says the deal isn’t final – even this may not be the last act of this long and tortuous drama.

I can't believe BP share is only 452p, given the news. Many short positions have to be closed before it settles down at much higher prices. US has not opened yet!!!

Wait til the yanks open.

Merrill Lynch note:
Press reports suggested that Rosneft is in advanced talks to acquire a 50pct stake in TNK-BP from BP's JV partner, AAR for US$28bn. This compares to the $22bn that we use for our valuation of BP's 50% stake. Marking to market, would imply an extra $6bn of value for BP, or about 5% on yesterday's market cap before the news broke. The 3% rally in the shares therefore looks justifiable.To recap, BP stated earlier this year that it was willing to sell its stake in TNK as its relationship with partner AAR had essentially broken down. The way this seems increasingly likely to play out is that BP will stay, but Rosneft will buy out BP's partner, AAR. This is a very good outcome for BP in our view.
1. TNK-BP could once again become a growth asset by improving operational management and opening up opportunities in the Russian arctic.
2. It would remove the potential dilution in BP earnings which we previously suggested could have been 5-10%. One uncertainty is how Rosneft would fund the deal. Rating agencies yesterday commented that Rosneft had about $15bn of debt capacity. We think TNK could pay a large dividend to shrink the company and also provide BP with cash which it could in turn use to buy treasury shares in Rosneft, giving it about a 10%
holding.
So overall, we believe the TNK saga is working towards a very favourable outcome for BP. We reiterate our Buy rating. BP trades on 6.8x 2013E PE, versus a sector on roughly 8x. We think the improving momentum in BP's underlying operations and resolution of the DOJ case regarding Macondo should help close the multiple gap between BP and the sector."

Wow, the difference between 6.8xE to 8xE, is about 20%, representing share price of 540p, much higher than current price of 451.

Long way to go.

TNK-BP manager arrested on suspicion of fraud in Russia

MOSCOW | Fri Oct 19, 2012 9:05am BST
(Reuters) - A government relations manager at Anglo-Russian oil firm TNK-BP has been arrested on suspicion of fraud, the Russian Interior Ministry and the company said on Friday.

The arrest of Igor Korneyev, who TNK-BP said had worked at the company for three months, comes after state-controlled oil major Rosneft made offers totalling over $50 billion (31 billion pounds) to take over Russia's No.3 oil firm.

TNK-BP is a 50-50 joint venture founded in 2003 between Britain's BP and a quartet of Soviet-born billionaires.

StockMarketWire.com
BP has confirmed that the 90-day period for the sale of its 50% stake in TNK-BP to Rosneft has concluded. BP says it will make an announcement if and when it reaches any agreement .

BP to sell TNK-BP stake to Rosneft

BP’s board has approved a $27bn deal with the Russian state oil company Rosneft to sell its stake in TNK-BP which should seal the UK energy group’s future in Russia for decades to come.

The deal means BP will swap its troublesome partnership with a group of Russian oligarchs for an alliance with arguably Russia’s most powerful company – the Kremlin-backed national energy champion.

The board gave BP’s executive team “strong support” to reach a deal that would see the UK group sell Rosneft its 50 per cent stake in TNK-BP for a mixture of cash and shares, according to a person familiar with the matter. An announcement is expected as early as Monday morning.


The Moscow Times take on it :- As Rosneft Privatization Looms, TNK-BP Fate Could Be Clear This Week

A takeover of TNK-BP in its entirety would mean that Rosneft controls about half of the Russian oil industry.
The board of directors of British oil company BP has approved a deal to swap its holding in TNK-BP for a big stake in Rosneft and cash, the Associated Press reported Sunday, citing an unidentified person familiar with the matter.

The deal would give BP a stake of between 16 and 20 percent in the Russian energy firm, sources familiar with the situation said, Reuters reported.

The deal can be described as having two steps for a single transaction worth in excess of $25 billion, according to one source familiar with a proposal put to BP by Rosneft last week, Reuters reported Sunday.

BP statement re TNK-BP

BP confirms it is in advanced discussions with Rosneft regarding the sale of its 50% interest in TNK-BP. No agreement has yet been reached. A further announcement will be made if and when an agreement is reached.

BP. is falling despite the news!!

.

UBS comment:
The current market value of the 12.5% stake in Rosneft is US$9.3bn, so the 50% stake in TNK-BP is valued at US$26.3bn. Therefore, the implied valuation of TNK-BP Holding is cUS$46bn, suggesting a 15% premium to the market. We highlight that in order to service the debt expected to be raised for the acquisitions, Rosneft will be interested in a dividend stream from TNK-BP, so traded TNK-BP Holding will likely remain an attractive dividend story. The impact on Rosneft’s 2013E EPS, on our estimates, would be positive. To finance the deal, Rosneft will likely borrow US$17bn, bringing its net debt to EBITDA to 1.6x, an acceptable level, in our view. Later, however, Rosneft would likely buy out Alfa-Access-Renova, so it will need more debt. Further leveraging may increase investor concern, we think.
All in all, we believe the news was largely expected by the market, so we do not anticipate any pronounced reaction in share prices.