December 30, 2015 [Reuters] - Trading house Gunvor has agreed to sell its last asset in Russia, a 50 percent stake in the Novorossiisk fuel oil terminal to a subsidiary of Kremlin-controlled Transneft, an industry source told Reuters on Monday.
Gunvor, one of the world’s top five oil trading houses, has been seeking to limit its exposure to Russia since former co-owner, Russian billionaire Gennady Timchenko, was hit by U.S. sanctions last year.
The Federal Anti-Monopoly Service (FAS) said earlier on Monday it had approved the sale of 50 percent in the terminal to Chernomortransneft, a subsidiary of the oil pipeline monopoly, Transneft.
Financial details of the deal have not been disclosed.
Gunvor, FAS and Transneft declined comments, while Interfax news agency cited Transneft’s spokesman, Igor Dyomin, as saying that the company was buying the stake from Gunvor. The deal has not been completed yet.
Novorossiisk Commercial Sea Port on the Black Sea, where Transneft is also a major shareholder, controls another 50 percent stake in the terminal.
The terminal mostly handles fuel oil from Rosneft’s Samara and Achinsk refineries, as well as vacuum gasoil from Lukoil’s Volgograd plant.
