Blow to BP as Rosneft deadline passes

BP’s hopes of making the Arctic a key part of its recovery plan were dealt a major blow today by the failure of a share swap and exploration deal with Russian oil group Rosneft.

Talks to broker a settlement with TNK-BP, its existing Russian partner, which had blocked the deal, ended without agreement, meaning the UK firm missed a midnight deadline set by Rosneft to get the deal back on track.