BP says Hayward remains CEO as storm Alex looms

LONDON/HOUSTON (Reuters) - BP Plcdefended its chief executive on Monday after Russia's deputy prime minister said he expected Tony Hayward to resign soon, as a strengthening storm threatened efforts to capture more oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico.

British-based BP said Hayward remained CEO and no change was under discussion after Igor Sechin said he expected Hayward to resign and that Russian officials would be told the name of his successor in Moscow on Monday.

But Sechin's office said later that management changes were not raised when he met Hayward and that BP remained committed to its strategic partnership with Russia on various projects.

In the Gulf of Mexico, high waves from tropical storm Alex would delay BP's plan to add more oil-siphoning capacity until next week, a company executive told reporters in Houston.

Kent Wells, executive vice president of exploration and production, said current siphoning systems were not expected to be affected by the storm but waves as high as 12 feet (3.6 metres) would delay hooking up a third vessel to capture oil.

Hayward was in Russia to address Kremlin worries over BP's local operations after the undersea leak that began on April 20, threatening fisheries, tourism and wildlife along the Gulf coast. The embattled CEO has drawn criticism for his response to the disaster and a series of gaffes.

ALEX STORMS INTO GULF

Forecasters from the National Hurricane Centre said "Alex could become a hurricane" on Monday or Tuesday. The storm is expected to make landfall again between Brownsville, Texas, and Tuxpan de Rodriguez Cano in Mexico.

Shell shut subsea production at two platforms and BP evacuated some personnel from three Gulf of Mexico platforms due to the threat of Alex, the companies said on Sunday.

Although a hurricane would interrupt BP's efforts to cap the well and clean up the spill, some specialists say the heavy weather could actually help mitigate the environmental damage by dispersing the oil.

U.S.-listed shares of BP were up 2.5 percent to $27.64 on Monday, the first session after a sell-off that sent the stock to a 14-year low. Its shares have lost more than half their value since the spill began and are down more than 24 percent since the start of June.

"The move today is a reflection of the drop the stock saw last week. It was getting oversold and now we're seeing a bounce off of that," said Andy Fitzpatrick, director of investments at Hinsdale Associates in Hinsdale, Illinois.

BP said on Monday its spending to cap the well, clean up the spill and compensate those affected had accelerated to $100 million (66 million pounds) a day in recent days, bringing the total bill so far to $2.65 billion.

The company has set up a $20 billion compensation fund under pressure from the U.S. government.

(Additional reporting by Adrian Virgen in Campeche, Mexico, Ernest Scheyder in Grande Isle, Bruce Nichols in Houston, Leigh Coleman in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, Sarah Young in London and Caren Bohan in Toronto; Writing by Erica Billingham and Jerry Norton; Editing by Simon Denyer and John O'Callaghan)