MOSCOW (Reuters) - China emerged on Thursday as a dark horse contender for the assets of stricken Russian oil major YUKOS as the company's state-driven break-up took yet another abrupt twist.
Amid intense speculation over who will become the ultimate owner of YUKOS's million-barrel-a-day oil unit, Yuganskneftegaz, Russian Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko said top Chinese oil company CNPC may end up with a one-fifth stake.
Khristenko's comments came after a top aide to President Vladimir Putin said Yugansk, bought at auction by state oil firm Rosneft for $9.4 billion, would not be included in Rosneft's planned merger with Russian gas monopoly Gazprom.
``The assets of Yuganskneftegaz will be spun off and transferred to a separate company, 100 percent owned by the state,'' Khristenko said in a statement issued by his ministry.
``Up to 20 percent of the shares in this company may be acquired by the Chinese National Petroleum Corporation. Such an option was mentioned in documents signed earlier with CNPC.''
http://nytimes.com/reuters/business/business-energy-russia-gazprom-rosneft.html