Rosneft is set to sell – Kommersant FM

Rosneft will discuss with Berlin the possible sale of its assets. According to Reuters, representatives of the Russian company will meet with German authorities on December 22, and this will be the first such contact since the freezing of the corporation’s assets in Germany. We will also talk about the refinery in the city of Schwedt. The Russian company owns almost 55% of the plant; this share was transferred to temporary management a year ago. Rosneft tried to challenge this decision.

Now she is trying to sell her stake, since there is no other choice, said Tatyana Neveeva, senior partner at Verba Legal: “The German government said that it would find an appropriate buyer for these assets, and, as they say, would provide this voluntarily and compulsorily.” sale.

To be honest, I don’t see any risks here. Apparently, some local player will be found who will be interested in such a deal. Perhaps some kind of auction will be organized, and, of course, the question arises where this purchase price will go.

I would like it to be transferred to Rosneft, because that would be fair. Moreover, this is not prohibited by sanctions legislation.”

The proceeds from the sale will most likely indeed go to Rosneft’s account, but it will not be able to use it, believes Kira Vinokurova, a special adviser on sanctions issues at the Pen & Paper Bar Association: “In the 12th package of anti-Russian restrictions of the EU, it became possible to sell blocked assets based on a separate special permit. Despite the fact that this property of Rosneft is under temporary management, in essence it is a blocked asset. I think these negotiations were initiated precisely in connection with these new provisions in the legislation.

Another point is that even if the agreed upon sale price of this asset is market and fair, it will not go directly to Rosneft, but will be in blocked accounts.

But perhaps the Russian company wants to take the first step towards a deal and have this money, albeit in a blocked account, until the issue with sanctions and the situation in Ukraine is resolved. Because in the current situation they have neither assets nor even frozen funds. In addition, this sale could resolve issues with ownership, when it will be clear who owns it, and with these calculations. Perhaps this can reduce the degree of mutual claims.”

Rosneft has shares in two more German refineries in Karlsruhe and Vogburg. Berlin gained control over them in September 2022. The German authorities explained this by the need to ensure uninterrupted oil supplies against the backdrop of the conflict in Ukraine and the ban on the import of raw materials from Russia. Moreover, Berlin took this step on its own; pan-European sanctions did not prohibit the purchase of Russian oil through pipelines.

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Ivan Koryakin