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Gunvor Withdraws Lukoil Asset Bid After U.S. Treasury Vows to Deny License

A public refusal by Treasury to grant a license derailed the sanctions‑triggered sale.

Overview

  • The Treasury Department posted on X that Gunvor would never receive a license to operate or profit, calling the trader a Kremlin puppet.
  • Gunvor disputed the label as misinformed and said it was pulling its proposal, stressing it has distanced itself from Russian trading since co‑founder Gennady Timchenko exited in 2014.
  • Lukoil had accepted Gunvor’s offer for its international business, with completion dependent on U.S. approval before a planned Nov. 21 blacklisting.
  • The assets at issue include refineries in Bulgaria and Romania, a significant stake in a Dutch fuel processing facility, and roughly 2,000 petrol stations across Europe.
  • OilPrice reported the bid at about $22 billion, and Gunvor’s CEO previously warned that failure to secure timely approvals could disrupt fuel supplies in parts of Central and Eastern Europe.