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Russian police seize state oil company hq
MOSCOW, June 28 (UPI) -- Russian police, accompanied by the ousted president of the state-owned Slavneft oil company, seized the corporation's Moscow headquarters and locked out the current president and other employees Friday as a simmering feud between powerful clans linked to the current and former Russian presidents burst into the open.
Some 40 Interior Ministry troops, reportedly accompanied by former Slavneft President Mikhail Gutseriyev, seized the downtown building and maintained a blockade as the company's acting President Yuri Sukhanov threatened to use the courts to evict them.
A sign posted on the locked door of the Slavneft headquarters said: "In connection with investigative work, Friday is declared a day off at Slavneft."
The message was signed "administration," prompting Sukhanov to fume "someone sitting there (in the building is acting like the legal administration."
The bizarre takeover follows a disputed extraordinary shareholders' meeting in May in which Gutseriyev was replaced with Sukhanov. Gutseriyev has denied involvement in the overnight takeover.
The public power struggle over control of one of Russia's largest oil companies, a stake in which is to be privatized by the state, illustrates the increasingly bitter battle between competing clans supporting Gutseriyev and Sukhanov.
Sukhanov, a former manager at the private Sibneft oil giant, is supposedly supported by that company and the so-called "Family," a clan linked to former President Boris Yeltsin, which includes Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov and oil mogul Roman Abramovich.
Gutseriyev, on the other hand, is said to be supported by the so-called "Petersburg" clan which includes close aides of President Vladimir Putin from his home town of St. Petersburg and banker Sergei Pugachev, who controls Mezhprombank.
Both Sibneft and Mezhprombank are understood to be in the bidding for a stake in Slavneft, which is one of Russia's top 10 oil producers.
The government has announced plans to sell 19.68 percent of its stake in Slavneft in the fall, still leaving the state with majority control of the oil producer.
The privatization is the last of the state-owned oil companies to come to market, and behind-the-scenes competition for the lucrative stake is cutthroat.
While Gutseriyev was ousted from Slavneft, he has managed to push through a ruling by a court in Ufa, where Slavneft is registered, to invalidate the election of Sukhanov as president. Sukhanov has also been placed under criminal investigation for abuse of power.
Law enforcement sources told the Interfax news agency that an investigative unit is search the Slavneft building and seizing documents which may incriminate Sukhanov.
The continuing operation has paralyzed Slavneft's operations and is expected to cost the company millions of dollars in lost revenues.
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