15 November 2003 01:44
Russian prime minister seeks to head off anti-Yukos wolves
Russia's prime minister yesterday tried to rein back aggressive regional
officials who have begun probing whether the embattled Yukos oil group has
fulfilled the terms of its key oil production licences.
Speaking in the Siberian oil city of Nizhnevartovsk, Mikhail Kasyanov said it
was "unacceptable" that the ministry of natural resources had
created "a threatening atmosphere around the company" during its
inspections.
He was reacting to reports that an unusually large number of officials,
accompanied by police, were taking part in audits in Nefteyugansk,
Yukos's heartland, and at other production subsidiaries. The
investigations raised investor fears of the systematic pulling apart of
Yukos, setting a dangerous precedent for other oil groups.
The raids came despite a clear warning from President Vladimir Putin a week
ago dismissing comments by the minister for natural resources that
Yukos's licences could be revoked.
The aggressive action by the inspectors highlighted the continued confusion
for Russian business, suggesting either that officials are ignoring Mr
Putin's words or that they believe he really holds a different view.
Mr Putin yesterday stepped up his public campaign to limit the damage caused
by the spiralling investigations around Yukos, telling members of the Russian
Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs that reforms would go ahead.
Executives praised the speech and did their best to play down the wider
impact of the Yukos case.
Top Kremlin officials, including Dmitry Medvedev, new head of the
presidential administration, have hinted the country's general
prosecutor's office may have gone too far in investigating Mikhail
Khodorkovsky, Yukos's former chief executive. He was arrested last month
on Dollars 1bn fraud and tax evasion charges.
Mr Kasyanov confirmed that plans for administrative reform may include
proposals to dilute the power of the prosecutor's office, handing
investigations to the ministry of justice. German Gref, the economics
minister, also stressed his commitment to pursue a new proportional petroleum
tax that would be levied based on an oil field's maturity. The proposal
had been fiercely resisted this summer by Yukos.
[FTI [The Financial Times]] |
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