Energy Blast – Sept 1, 2011

Exxon and Rosneft could announce joint international projects as early as next year, whilst spurned prospective partner BP has its Moscow office raided by ‘black-clad special forces’, sanctioned by court marshalls, that has ‘paralyzed’ its work and is ‘expected to last several days’; the raid was made in connection with a lawsuit filed by minority TNK-BP shareholders.  BP’s Russia President, Jeremy Huck, said, ‘We can only see these actions as being part of a pressure campaign against BP’s business in Russia’.  Reuters has compiled a timeline of BP’s involvement in Russia.  Russian President Dmitry Medvedev says that Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych’s move to secure a gut in gas prices is ‘very sad, it is sponging’, and said that no discount would be offered unless Ukraine joins Russia’s customs union; Ukraine filed an official request for 13 billion cubic meters less than it is contracted to buy this year, but Gazprom, meanwhile, will force Naftogaz Ukrainy to pay for its full contracted volume of gas, regardless of how much it actually takes.  A wave of detentions highlights Kazakhstan’s recent ‘upsurge in attacks in its oil-rich regions’.  Lukoil’s shares are continuing to climb after the company revealed a 67% increase on second quarter profits.