Russian Multi-Millionaires To Black TNK-BP meeting

BP's billionaire partners in TNK-BP will boycott a shareholder meeting of the Russian oil venture tomorrow as a dispute between the owners intensifies.

Any decisions made at the meeting will be challenged in court, except for dividend payments for minority shareholders, AAR Chief Executive Officer Stan Polovets said today in an interview on Bloomberg Television.

BP owns 50 percent of TNK-BP Ltd., with the other half split between companies controlled by billionaires Mikhail Fridman, German Khan, Viktor Vekselberg and Len Blavatnik, together known as AAR. BP is locked in a dispute with the billionaire shareholders, who have called for TNK-BP CEO Robert Dudley's resignation for favoring BP's interest over their own.
TNK-BP Chief Operating Officer Tim Summers rejected criticism of the oil venture June 17, saying its performance has been among the best in the world since it was formed in 2003.

Polovets said the dispute could hurt TNK-BP's operations if there is no speedy resolution.