French manufacturer of medical oxygen Air Liquide will leave Russia

The French manufacturer of industrial gases and cryogenic equipment Air Liquide has decided to leave Russia, the company will transfer its assets to local management, about this informed company press office. In addition, Air Liquide also supplied medical oxygen to Russian hospitals.

It is clarified that the company has signed a memorandum of understanding with local management, according to which the business in Russia will be transferred to it as part of the MBO (Management Buyout) deal. In addition, the deal must also be approved by regulatory authorities. Air Liquide’s activities in Russia ceased on 1 September.

“This asset transfer project to local managers aims to ensure an orderly, sustainable and responsible transfer of its activities in Russia, in particular ensuring the continuity of oxygen supply to hospitals,” the report said.

About 720 people are employed in the Russian division of Air Liquide, while the Russian business accounts for less than 1% of the total turnover of the French corporation. The sale of shares to Russian management “is aimed at the orderly, sustainable and responsible transfer of the company’s activities in Russia, ensuring, in particular, the continuity of the supply of oxygen to hospitals,” it says in the same place.

Air Liquide worked closely with Russian metallurgical enterprises, including “Evraz ZSMK”, “Metalloinvest” and “Severstal”, with which she created a joint venture to launch industrial gas production in 2005.

In the spring of 2021, Rusatom Overseas (RAOS, an enterprise of Rosatom), Air Liquide and the government of the Sakhalin Region signed a memorandum of understanding to explore the possibility of building a complex on Sakhalin to produce up to 100,000 tons of hydrogen per year by 2024-2025. In February, the parties completed the feasibility study of the project, after which preparations began for the next stage of preparation for the project. However, today the RAOS press service reported that cooperation with the French company has expired and will not be extended. “Rosatom” refused “from the concept of a single supplier” and will work independently with the participation of Russian and foreign partners, the company noted.

Subscribe on Vedomosti on Telegram and stay up to date with the main economic and business news.