MOSCOW, January 25 (RAPSI) – Russia’s largest oil producer Rosneft filed a lawsuit with the Moscow Commercial Court against Transneft oil company over allegedly unlawful cancellation of oil transfer services’ provision, court documents read on Wednesday.

On January 11, Rosneft lodged a lawsuit with the court over protection of its property interests

On December 27, Rosneft filed a lawsuit against Transneft, asking the court to impose preliminary interim measures on protection of its property interests. TASS news agency’s source in the Energy Ministry said that the dispute may be caused by Rosneft discontent with methods of calculating residue oil and petroleum products in Transneft’s system.

On December 28, the court granted the plaintiff’s request and ruled to impose preliminary interim measures which came into force on January 1 and prohibited Transneft from stopping transfer of oil belonging to Rosneft. The latter company claimed that Transneft’s pipelines transport up to 1.3 million of tons of oil daily.

The plaintiff stated that cancellation of oil transfer services by Transneft will halt development of oil deposits used by Rosneft and its subsidiaries and which rely on contract signed by the two oil companies. According to Rosneft, such halt will cause significant irreparable damage to the oil company and its employees as well as government and other parties as it will provoke oil shortage.

Transneft disagreed with the court’s measures. The company notes that Rosneft did not provide sufficient evidence to justify emergent preliminary interim measures before review of the lawsuit by the court. Transneft believes that there was no evidence of significant damage to the plaintiff and that balance of sides in court was disrupted by such measures.