Russia's Rosneft buys out TNK-BP

[October 22, 2012]  LONDON (AP) -- Russian oil giant Rosneft is to buy TNK-BP, the joint venture between AAR, a group of Russian oil oligarchs, and BP, the British the energy company.

BP announced Monday that it had agreed to sell its 50 percent stake in TNK-BP to Rosneft for $17.1 billion in cash and a 12.84 percent stake in the Russian oil group.

Separately Monday, Rosneft said it had agreed to buy the other 50 percent in TNK-BP from AAR for $28 billion. Rosneft said the deal with AAR is "entirely independent of the transaction with BP."

In its statement, BP said that it would use some of the money from its deal to raise its stake in Rosneft to 19.75 percent.

[Associated Press]

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