EMEA News
Gunvor Sells Majority Stake in Russian Oil Product Terminal
Commodity trader Gunvor has sold a 74 percent stake in the world's largest oil products terminal for an undisclosed amount, the Financial Times reports.
The stake in the Russian terminal, which is located in Ust-Luga along the Baltic Sea, was reportedly bought by Russian billionaire Andrei Bokarev, who reportedly has interest in coal and railways.
According to reports, Gunvor is attempting to lower its exposure to Russia and intends to invest the proceeds in development elsewhere.
"Having a strong, independent Russian partner will ensure the export terminal continues to provide fair access for the whole of the Russian oil industry," said Gunvor CEO Torbjörn Törnqvist.
Gunvor will purportedly keep a 26 percent stake in the company.
Experts say that the move is not surprising, especially as company co-founder Gennady Timchenko divested his stake in the company earlier this year after being sanctioned by the U.S.
"It was pretty clear soon after Mr Timchenko's severed his links with the company that Gunvor's advantages in Russia were severed too," said Craig Pirrong, a finance professor at the University of Houston.
"In the current environment, the Russians were not going to allow such an important asset to be held by a foreign-owned company," Pirrong said.
"It was a matter of finding a Russian buyer with the wherewithal and liquidity in the current environment to pay a fair price."
At the time, it was reported that Gunvor's attempted sale was being seen as an effort to distance themselves from the Russian regime.
