Moldova fears crisis on fuel market due to sanctions against Lukoil, discussing buying out part of oil company's assets

The Moldovan government is seeking solutions to avoid a crisis in the petroleum products market, which is possible as a result of the sanctions imposed against Lukoil, and this includes discussing the buyout of part of the oil company's assets into state ownership, Moldovan Energy Minister Dorin Junghietu said.

Junghietu heads the working group to solve the problem that has emerged.

"In Moldova, Lukoil owns a number of gas stations, supplies the oil market with resources, and is the owner of the private property right to the warehouse, supply and refueling of aircraft - the only warehouse at [Chisinau] airport," Junghietu said on his Facebook page.

The state's goal is the security of the petroleum products market and ensuring the continuity of flights.

"To this end, the council for examining investments of importance to state security decided to reject Lukoil's proposal to alienate its assets and sell the airport infrastructure to another company, reasoning that this company cannot be accepted by Moldova for national security reasons. The council presented a proposal to buy Lukoil's warehouse at the airport so that the state could take over the management of the company's infrastructure and resources. The deadline for submitting the proposal is November 17, as Lukoil will not be able to operate [in Moldova due to the entry into force of U.S. sanctions] from November 21," Junghietu said.

Moldova supports the U.S. sanctions, but at the same time, "like other EU countries, Moldova has requested a temporary permit from the U.S. for the activity of the sanctioned company until the problem is resolved, so as not to disrupt the supply of petroleum resources to Moldova and not affect people's daily lives," he said.

"We are also holding constant negotiations with Bulgaria and Romania, including [with] the company Rompetrol, regarding the supply of gasoline, diesel fuel and kerosene. We will continue to inform citizens as the situation develops. We assure citizens that all decisions made by the government and the investment review council are taken to protect national interests, as well as the security of Moldova," Junghietu said.

Previously, the management of Chisinau International Airport warned airlines that disruptions in aircraft refueling could occur. This is due to the fact that Lukoil is the only company that owns the petroleum products warehouse and carries out aircraft refueling at the airport.

The U.S. Treasury Department included Lukoil on the sanctions list on October 15, issuing a license for winding down operations until November 21. Soon after, Lukoil announced its intention to sell its foreign assets. It later became known that Lukoil had received and accepted an offer to buy out the foreign assets from the international commodity trader Gunvor. The deal involves the acquisition of 100% of Lukoil International GmbH, with the key terms of the deal agreed upon by the parties. However, the U.S. Treasury Department said that Washington will not issue a license to Gunvor to conduct business while the conflict in Ukraine continues.

Gunvor called the U.S. Treasury Department's statement about the company "fundamentally misinformed and false," while withdrawing its proposal to buy Lukoil's international assets.