MOSCOW, December 9. /TASS/. First-rate attorneys, representing both Rosneft and the investors, provided legal services to Russia’s top oil producer in privatizing its stake, Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday.
"Naturally, the deal was carried out under intensive legal supervision," Peskov stressed. "Certainly, strategic investors engaged the best lawyers whereas the Rosneft company provided the legal defense for all economic activities, including this deal."
Peskov added that there was nothing strange about the deal being scrutinized, referring to the White House press secretary Josh Earnest’s statement that the US Treasury Department "will carefully look at a transaction like this" and would "evaluate what impact sanctions will have on it." The consortium of Glencore plc, the London-listed commodities trading and mining company, and Qatar’s sovereign fund became the strategic investors, buying out Rosneft’s 19.5% stake.
Rosneft’s head Igor Sechin said at Wednesday’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin that the deal on selling the large stake in Rosneft for €10.5 bln had been completed.
Later, Glencore said that the deal would be sealed by mid-December, noting that the company would pay for a stake in Rosneft with its own €300 mln of equity. The rest will be paid by the Qatari sovereign fund and will come from non-recourse bank financing.