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TNK-BP cleared to buy BP`s assets in Vietnam
Russia's energy minister signed a memorandum with Vietnam's government allowing Russian oil company TNK-BP to acquire BP's Vietnamese gas assets, a source close to TNK-BP told Reuters on Monday.
The source said that Vietnamese state oil group Petrovietnam waived its option to buy the assets.
"That was a decision by the Vietnam Politburo. I believe the deal will be closed in around three months," the source said.
Spokesmen for TNK-BP and Russia's Energy Ministry declined to comment on the report.
Last month, BP agreed to sell a package of oil and gas fields in Vietnam and Venezuela to its Russian joint venture TNK-BP for USD 1.8 billion as the London-based oil major raises cash to pay for its Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
The sale brings to around USD 11.5 billion the amount BP has agreed from asset sales in recent months, against a divestment target of USD 25 billion to USD 30 billion over the next 18 months.
India's Oil Natural Gas Corp, another partner of BP's in Vietnam, was also given priority options to buy the stake and had the right to approve the final sale. It was not immediately clear if ONGC still held its option.
Last week, TNK-BP Chief Financial Officer Jonathan Muir said Petrovietnam and ONGC had right of first refusal on BP's Vietnam assets and could exercise them before year-end.
Moneycontrol
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