Report: TNK-BP to stop investing in new refining

Russian oil company TNK-BP will halt investment in new refining projects and focus on maintaining current production levels, the state-run news agency RIA-Novosti cited a top company official as saying Thursday.

TNK-BP Vice President Alexander Kaplan also said the company — half-owned by British giant BP PLC — would cut 15 percent of its head office's downstream business staff, or 40 jobs, before the end of the year, RIA-Novosti reported.

Russian oil companies are struggling to keep output from falling and are lining up for government loans. A senior Russian official said this month that Russia's oil production would decline next year for the first time in a decade.

Kaplan said the company would not invest in any new refining projects next year, according to RIA-Novosti. "We will leave money only to support the existing production," the agency quoted him as saying.

He added that TNK-BP was working on an assumption that oil prices would hover around $60 to $70 a barrel next year, but that production could suffer if prices fall below $50.

TNK-BP's final capital expenditure plan is to be approved at a board meeting on Dec. 11, Kaplan was quoted as saying.

The company could not immediately be reached for comment.

Back To Top