London. Beleaguered BP chief executive Tony Hayward is expected to announce plans to stand down within 24 hours, it emerged today. He is said to be currently negotiating his resignation deal after it appeared the board decided his departure was the only way to draw a line under the Gulf of Mexico oil spill crisis.

London.HSBC Bank PLC (HBC) Friday said it had formed a partnership in energy trading with Total Oil Trading SA, or Totsa, the trading arm of French oil major Total SA (TOT).
The partnership will enable HSBC to offer over-the-counter energy derivatives to its clients, HSBC said. Under the agreement, HSBC will focus on deal origination and credit risk management, while Totsa will focus on oil trading.

Montreal. Negotiations have restarted on a potential deal that could determine the fate of hundreds of jobs at Shell Canada's largest refinery. Liberal MP Denis Coderre says Israel's Delek Group has notified Shell that it is willing to resume talks to possibly buy the Montreal operation.

Houston. Anadarko Petroleum Corp (APC.N) was preparing to return workers to the Neptune oil platform and other Gulf of Mexico facilities on Saturday, a company spokesman said. Anadarko shut Neptune and evacuated staff due to the threat from Tropical Depression Bonnie, which has weakened significantly in the past 24 hours.