UPDATE: BP CEO Tony Hayward In Abu Dhabi On Private Visit

7th Jul 2010 09:28

(Adds more details, updates share price.) DUBAI (Zawya Dow Jones)--BP PLC's (BP.LN) embattled chief executive Tony Hayward is in Abu Dhabi on July 7 amid ongoing speculation that the U.K. oil major is seeking the support of a Middle East investor to prevent a hostile takeover. A person familiar with Hayward's itinerary told Zawya Dow Jones that his visit to the oil-rich Persian Gulf emirate was "private". He's expected to leave today, the person added. A spokesman for the company in the United Arab Emirates was unreachable. BP tried to douse speculation Tuesday that it was looking for an investor to buy a large piece of the company, saying it wouldn't issue new stock to raise money to cover the costs of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Reports over the weekend suggested that BP was courting sovereign wealth funds in the Middle East including Abu Dhabi to buy new shares, enabling BP to raise about $9 billion in capital. Libya's top oil official, Shokri Ghanem, said Monday that BP was a bargain and recommended that the nation's sovereign wealth fund invest in the oil giant. BP shares last traded Wednesday 1.8% higher at 351.8 pence in a broadly negative London market. Executives from the company held meetings Wednesday morning at the Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi to review its operating contract in the emirate. It wasn't immediately clear whether Hayward was present at the meeting of the BP Exploration Operating Co. Saudi newspaper A' Eqtessadiyah reported Wednesday that a delegation of Saudi investors is in London to meet with BP, seeking a stake of between 10% and 15%. The paper didn't say where it got the information. -By Andrew Critchlow, Dow Jones Newswires, +9714 446 1694, [email protected] (Nour Malas, Oliver Klaus and Tahani Karrar-Lewsely also contributed to this report.) Copyright (c) 2010 Dow Jones & Co. (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 07, 2010 04:28 ET (08:28 GMT)