A COURT in Moscow yesterday ruled to suspend Robert Dudley as chief executive of TNK-BP for two years in a big blow to BP’s involvement in Russia’s second-largest oil company.

BP said it would appeal the decision, insisting Mr Dudley remained chief executive and would continue to run the company from a secret location outside Russia until the appeals process had been exhausted.

The court decision comes amid an intense public battle for control over the 50/50 partnership between BP and its Russian shareholders: Mikhail Fridman, German Khan, Viktor Vekselberg and Len Blavatnik.

BP said it was “very disappointed” by the decision and that Mr Dudley had the company’s full support. Mr Dudley said in an e-mailed statement: “This is another example of the sort of administrative interference which I referred to when I left Russia.”

The Russian shareholders have in the past denied any connection to the inquiries and investigations targeting the company.

People close to Mr Dudley said BP had 10 days to appeal the ruling, but that a court review “will likely be months away”.

Mr Dudley, a former BP executive, has been running TNK-BP from a secret location since he fled Russia last month, citing concerns over systematic harassment as the dispute over the running of the company escalated.

Tony Hayward, BP chief executive, said last month that Mr Dudley could remain heading the company while outside Russia only for a matter of months.

TNK-BP’s foreign staff has been hit by a wall of administrative pressure, including a series of probes into alleged violations of the labour laws. This month a Moscow court found Mr Dudley guilty of breaking Russia’s labour code, but chose to fine him $21.

Yesterday’s ruling suspends Mr Dudley for two years as the result of a second inquiry.

A source close to the TNK-BP board said the ruling related to an investigation into whether all of TNK-BP’s 1,800 staff had switched from fixed-term to open-ended contracts in line with Russia’s labour code and whether the entire staff had fully acquainted itself with reams of rules and regulations on labour practices.

The source said about 30 of the company’s 1,800 staff had been unable to do so because they were on leave and said this was the basis for the court decision to suspend Mr Dudley. – (Reuters)