International Holding Company (IHC) of Abu Dhabi has expressed interest to the U.S. Treasury to potentially acquire the international assets of Russia’s Lukoil, the UAE conglomerate told Reuters on Friday, joining a growing number of suitors for the foreign assets of the now sanctioned second-largest oil company in Russia.
IHC told Reuters in response to a query whether it had expressed interest in Lukoil’s international assets to the U.S. Treasury Department, “Yes, we have expressed interest in Lukoil’s foreign assets.”
IHC did not elaborate further on the subject.
The Abu Dhabi firm joins private equity giant Carlyle and U.S. oil and gas supermajors Chevron and ExxonMobil, who are also believed to have already expressed interest in the foreign assets of Lukoil.
As of Friday, Lukoil is under U.S. sanctions, alongside Russia’s top oil producer Rosneft. The Trump Administration designated last month the two biggest Russian oil producers and exporters to force Moscow to genuine negotiations about ending the war in Ukraine.
This was the first sanctions move by the Trump Administration against Russia, but it became the most disruptive, stranding millions of barrels of crude at sea as buyers retreat and forcing a fire sale of Lukoil’s international assets.
The U.S. Treasury rejected the first suitor, Switzerland-based commodity trading giant Gunvor, with which Lukoil had even reached a preliminary agreement to sell its international assets. Describing Gunvor as “the Kremlin’s puppet,” the U.S. declined to approve the deal, but extended through December 13 a license for Lukoil to negotiate a sale of its international businesses.
Lukoil is the most active Russian energy company internationally, with upstream operations in the Middle East, Central Asia, and Latin America, and retail fuel businesses in many parts of the world, including the United States.
The potential suitors for Lukoil’s international assets now include Carlyle, Chevron, and Exxon, according to various media reports of the past week.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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