BP could be sued for receiving stolen property if it buys the $9 billion (£4.6 billion) stake in Rosneft that will be auctioned by the Kremlin tomorrow.

The 9.44 per cent stake in Rosneft is one of a number of assets that belongs to Yukos, the former Russian oil giant, being sold by the Russian authorities.

Yukos, which listed in London last year, raising $10.6 billion, was declared bankrupt after claims that it had failed to pay $30 billion in tax. Its assets are being sold to pay the bill.

However, GML, Yukos’s main shareholder, insists that the oil company was ruined for political reasons and that its assets are being stolen. GML is suing the Russian Federation for $50 billion and says that companies buying Yukos assets also could become targets for compensation.

Tim Osborne, director of GML, formerly Group Menatep, said that if attempts to sue the Russian Federation failed, the company would go after Western businesses that have benefited from the break-up of Yukos.

On Friday BP confirmed that it would bid for Yukos’s Rosneft stake, which is valued at up to $9 billion. Lord Browne of Madingley, the chief executive, and Tony Howard, the chief executive-designate, met President Putin of Russia last week to clear the way for a potential acquisition.

Mr Osborne said: “Anybody buying these assets at auction should think long and hard about it. We say that Yukos was stolen by the Russian Federation and anybody that buys its assets at auction are receiving stolen goods.”

GML is suing the Russian Government under the Energy Charter Treaty and the case is being heard in The Hague by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law. There is a hearing in June to determine whether the court has the jurisdiction to judge the case. The Russians claim that the court has no jurisdiction and should throw out the Energy Charter Treaty claim.

Mr Osborne said: “If we were to lose the Energy Charter claim, we would certainly look very closely at companies operating in the United States or UK who had benefited. We think the courts will be favourably inclined to hear our case in these countries.”

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