UPDATE 1-Fridman says likely to step down as TNK-BP head

* Says "unlikely" to carry on as interim CEO

* Permanent successor to be named soon

(Adds detail, background)

By Vladimir Soldatkin

MOSCOW, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Billionaire Mikhail Fridman is likely to step down soon as acting head of Russian oil company TNK-BP (TNBPI.RTS), with a permanent chief executive to fill the void at the dispute-riven venture.

The void at the helm of TNK-BP is the result of a row over strategy and control that erupted last year between BP (BP.L) and the four billionaires, including Fridman, who share ownership of the company, which generated $5.3 billion in profit in 2008.

Asked whether he would continue as acting chief executive, Fridman told Reuters: "It's unlikely."

When pressed on the identity of his successor, Fridman, who was speaking on the sidelines of a meeting of Russian businessmen, said: "You will soon find out."

TNK-BP's board is due to meet this month to discuss candidates for the chief executive post. Industry sources had said earlier that Fridman could keep his post. [ID:nL6706134]

Fridman, ranked Russia's fourth-richest businessman by Forbes, was appointed interim CEO in May in a move perceived as the final step by BP in ceding management control at the firm, which contributes a quarter of BP's global oil production.

The last permanent head of the company, Robert Dudley, left Russia with a number of other expatriate workers at the height of the shareholder dispute. Tim Summers, until recently the firm's chief operating officer, was acting CEO before Fridman.

When Fridman was appointed in May, TNK-BP said it hoped to select a new chief executive by the end of this year. Two young executives were also appointed at the time to vie for the role.

The front-runner is seen as the Russian partners' candidate, Mikhail Barsky, a 35-year-old former head of smaller oil firm West Siberian Resources.

BP's nominee, Pavel Skitovich, ran gold miner Polyus Gold (PLZL.MM) for five months in 2007 and worked as a Soviet diplomat in Uganda early in his career.

Sources have said that Fridman's ally and another key TNK-BP shareholder, Executive Director German Khan, is the real power behind day-to-day operations at the company. (Writing by Dmitry Zhdannikov and Robin Paxton; Editing by Dmitry Sergeyev/Will Waterman)