Russia to Withdraw BP Licence

Siberian court said it did not have jurisdiction to hear asuit from TNK-BP challenging regulators' claims it was notproducing enough gas from the field.

Russia's natural resources ministry said it was "very likely" the licensing agency would discuss on June 1 whether to revoke the licence on the grounds that TNK-BP was not fulfilling its terms.

That would clear the way for a new tender for the field - one of Russia's biggest with 2,000bn cubic metres of gas - widely expected to be won by Gazprom, Russia's state-controlled natural gas monopoly.

Analysts have seen the attack on Kovykta as part of a broader move to return Russia's biggest oil and gas deposits to majority state ownership. -Neftegaz.ru