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The dispute over TNK-BP erupted last week after the Russian billionaire co-owners of the Anglo-Russian oil joint venture said they planned to sue BP in Moscow and international courts.

Byron King in Energy and Oil looks at the reasons behind the TNK-BP dispute:

The Kremlin has invested heavily in Russia’s image as an energy superpower. During the recent Russian Victory Day celebrations on May 9, many commentators referred to Russia’s energy sector as one of the key elements of Russian power.

The relationship between BP and the shareholders in its Russian joint venture, TNK-BP, Russia’s third largest oil firm, has very publicly fallen apart, reports Britain’s The Guardian newspaper:

Yesterday BP and the Russian shareholders were forced to acknowledge differences over strategy, with the Russian billionaires who own 50% of the company arguing that TNK-BP, Russia’s third-largest oil producer, should be able to expand abroad even if that meant its coming into direct competition with BP itself.

BP PLC (TNK-BP Holding OAO, to a state-owned oil monopoly such as Gazprom OAO – the latest attempt by the Russian government to expand its energy monopoly and drive out international oil majors.