A group of minority shareholders in BP PLC's (BP) Russian joint venture TNK-BP said Wednesday they assess damages for a missed opportunity to replace the U.K. oil major in an Arctic exploration deal with state oil producer OAO Rosneft (ROSN.RS) at 87 billion rubles ($2.96 billion).

Earlier this year, TNK-BP sought to replace BP in a planned tie-up with Rosneft, which included developing three Arctic offshore blocks and a $16 billion share swap, but BP directors on the TNK-BP board voted against that proposal.

The minority shareholders in TNK-BP Holding (TNBP.RS)--the listed unit of TNK-BP Ltd., which is owned on a 50-50 basis by BP and a group of Soviet-born businessmen--claim that BP executives, who until recently served as board members of TNK-BP Holding, were responsible for losses caused by preventing the joint venture in taking part in a Rosneft deal.

The planned deal between BP and Rosneft collapsed in May, blocked in court by BP's partners in TNK-BP.

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