Russia’s second-largest oil producer, Lukoil, said on January 29 it has agreed to sell the majority of its foreign assets, worth around $22 bn, to U.S. private equity firm Carlyle Group, pending approval from the U.S. government.
The deal involves LUKOIL International GmbH, the unit responsible for managing the company’s overseas operations. Analysts estimate Lukoil’s total foreign assets at roughly $22 bn. Lukoil noted that the agreement is not exclusive and is conditional on regulatory approvals, including clearance from the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
Both Lukoil and Russia’s largest oil producer, Rosneft, were sanctioned by the U.S. last October in response to slow progress in peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, the deadliest European conflict since World War Two. Previous attempts to sell Lukoil’s international assets, including a deal with Swiss trading group Gunvor and a proposed share swap through Xtellus Partners, were blocked by the U.S. Treasury.
The Treasury has set a February 28 deadline for Lukoil to complete the sale of its global portfolio.
Kursiv also reports that Tashkent is engaged in discussions with Washington regarding the assets of Russian oil company Lukoil in Uzbekistan.
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