LONDON, November 3. /TASS/. A consortium led by US businessman Todd Boehly is preparing a securities swap deal to acquire the foreign assets of Russian oil company Lukoil. The deal is expected to be concluded within weeks, Reuters reported, citing sources.
According to the sources, an unnamed bank acting on behalf of the consortium has purchased frozen Lukoil securities from Western investors to subsequently exchange them for the company’s foreign assets.
On October 21, the US Treasury Department extended until November 21 a license exempting negotiations over the sale of Russian oil company Lukoil’s foreign assets from US sanctions.
Following its inclusion on UK and US sanctions lists, Lukoil announced plans to sell its international assets. In January, Lukoil said it had reached an agreement with US investment firm Carlyle to sell Lukoil International GmbH, which holds the company’s foreign assets. The deal excluded projects in Kazakhstan and was subject to a number of conditions, including approval from US authorities. At the time, the company emphasized that the agreement was not exclusive and that Lukoil was continuing negotiations with other potential buyers. The agreement with Carlyle expired in late July.