A worker cleans the LUKOIL company logo on the company headquarters in central Moscow.
Photo: Sergey Mikheev
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LUKOIL to Buy Mazeikiu nafta from Lithuania Only
// If Lithuania buys it from YUKOS
International Cooperation
President of LUKOIL Vagit Alekperov met Lithuanian Prime Minister Algirdas Brazauskas and Seimas’ chairman Arturas Paulauskas yesterday. LUKOIL suggested the Lithuanian authorities buy out 53.7 stake in Mazeikiu nafta from YUKOS so that the ultimate buyer will not have to negotiate with the disgraced oil company.
Prime Minister Brazauskas received Alikperov in the morning. As the premier says, they were “very discreet” talking about the sale-purchase of Mazeikiu nafta but they did not discuss the price of the stake. The head of LUKOIL emphasized that he “won’t buy stocks in Mazeikiu nafta only if the price is too high.” Vagit Alikperov mentioned that YUKOS and the Lithuanian government had not drawn up the terms of the sale of stocks in Mazeikiu nafta yet, so “it is unclear if YUKOS and the Lithuanian government will buy these shares separately, or the state will buy the whole of the stake at once.” “It’s hard to comment a deal if you don’t know when and what you will buy,” the head of LUKOIL complained.
Meanwhile, a day before the meeting with the Russian businessman, Algirdas Brazauskas called LUKOIL one of the third main candidates to own the Lithuanian oil company, along with TNK-BP and Austria-based Baltic Holding. Yet, the Lithuanian prime minister called yesterday the bid of Baltic Holding the worst of all since the company had “neither raw, nor a market”.
Mazeikiu nafta unites the Mazeikiu refinery, an oil terminal in Buting and Birzu naftotiekis oil-pipe enterprise. Netherlands-incorporated Yukos International owns 53.7 percent of stocks in the company and 40.66 more is with the Lithuanian government.
Vagit Alekperov met Arturas Paulauskas later. Following the talks, the speaker of the Lithuanian parliament reported that LUKOIL hoped to acquire Mazeikiu nafta by buying it from the government and without any dealings with YUKOS. “They are sure that they will buy stocks from the government. They surmise that the state will buy the company’s stake from YUKOS and they will buy it from the government and will only have the government to deal with,” the speaker said.
The Lithuanian Seimas will receive this week a bill on granting the government powers to get 3 billion litas ($1.05 billion) loan to buy out 53.7 percent stake from YUKOS. Redeeming a stake from YUKOS, the state plans to sell the biggest part of its in Mazeikiu nafta keeping as much as 10 percent to itself.
Kommersant will track the development of events.
Vladimir Vodo, Vilnius
All the Article in Russian as of Sep. 28, 2005
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