Transneft in court

A brave investor is taking on one of Russia's dominant energy firms

Transneft, the Russian public company with the country's worst corporate governance reputation, is facing an unprecedented challenge from a minority investor. The oil pipeline firm, which runs a near monopoly on Russian oil infrastructure, is being sued by United Capital Partners (UCP), a heavyweight investment firm, over its discriminatory dividend policy. An arbitration court in Moscow was to rule on the case on 28 October, after we had gone to press. Transneft's niggardly approach to paying dividends to preference shareholders has been a flashpoint for portfolio investors for years. This is the first time, though, that the company has been taken to court for what UCP claims is "illegal an