• 12 Aug 2008 at 12:06 PM

BP: Bad Timing

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Does BP has the worst sense of timing imaginable? They shut down their pipeline just as Medvedev said the Russians were ceasing combat operations. Those guys really can’t win when it comes to Russia. Or any other petrostate, like Texas.

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    Comments (12)

    1. 1
      Posted by guest | August 12, 2008 at 12:11 PM

      I wish I had the intellectual capital of a BP trader.

    2. 2
      Posted by guest | August 12, 2008 at 12:19 PM

      What Russians say and what they do are two entirely separate things. Witness TNK-BP for example.

    3. 3
      Posted by guest | August 12, 2008 at 12:27 PM

      It’s entirely possible that BP’s shutdown of Baku-Supsa was a condition imposed by Russia. With the BTC shut down due to PKK attacks on the Turkish section and Baku-Supsa not operating, all Azeri oil will now have to go through the Russian owned Baku-Novorossiysk pipeline. This would represent Russian influence over the oil export routes without physically controlling the pipelines, which could be a good “compromise” solution for the time being. The true test will be how quickly Baku-Supsa and the BTC are reopened…

    4. 4
      Posted by guest | August 12, 2008 at 12:35 PM

      BP has been very quiet about what its relationship is with the Russian authorities since the head of the joint BP-Russian operation fled Russia in fear for his life. They have a huge investment in Russia and another huge investment in Georgia. I don’t think BP is banking on the benign rule of international law.

    5. 5
      Posted by guest | August 12, 2008 at 1:00 PM

      no question this was a russian influenced decision.

    6. 6
      Posted by polizeros | August 12, 2008 at 1:07 PM

      Russia said their cease fire will allow them to keep shooting at whoever, so it seems a dicey cease fire at best.
      Expect unsettled conditions for quite a while.

    7. 7
      Posted by guest | August 12, 2008 at 1:24 PM

      “does BP has…”
      bush league

    8. 8
      Posted by guest | August 12, 2008 at 2:02 PM

      @7 I don’t understand it either…Where’s Bess?

    9. 9
      Posted by guest | August 12, 2008 at 2:02 PM

      These are probably the most intelligent sounding DB comments I’ve read in a long time. Probably means a top in the crude market is in.

    10. 10
      Posted by guest | August 12, 2008 at 2:44 PM

      their product volume was going down before this. Let’s see, if demand is constant and volumes are down…

    11. 11
      Posted by guest | August 12, 2008 at 2:57 PM

      @2
      Exactly right. They’re still fighting, just not heading towards the capital anymore.

    12. 12
      Posted by guest | August 12, 2008 at 3:58 PM

      Israel Trains Quad Bikers?
      “Jewish Georgian Minister Temur Yakobshvili on Sunday praised the Israel Defense Forces for its role in training Georgian troops and said Israel should be proud of its military might, in an interview with Army Radio.”
      “Soldiers left by any means available. Dozens of troops clung to cars on the back of a transporter lorry, while five other soldiers fled on one quad bike.”
      http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article4509692.ece
      that video is a peach

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