Lukoil leaves Moldova: assets transferred to state ownership
30 January 09:25
Under the influence of US sanctions, Lukoil’s assets at Chisinau Airport have been transferred to Moldovan state ownership. In addition, the company was forced to pay a fine of several thousand dollars.
This was reported by "Komersant Ukrainian" with reference to the Facebook page of the Moldovan Ministry of Energy.
It is noted that the State Property Agency and Chisinau International Airport signed documents with Lukoil Moldova that effectively nationalize Lukoil’s assets at the airport.
Interestingly, Chisinau also banned Lukoil’s activities in areas of strategic interest to state security, with existing beneficiaries and founders.
Lukoil was required to transfer the assets by January 9 of this year. Since the company did not comply with the requirements, on January 16, the Council imposed a fine of $300,000. The deadline for the transfer of assets has been set for January 28 of this year.
As for the operation of gas stations in Moldova, their management will be transferred to the American investment fund Carlyle Group.
Yesterday, January 30, it became known that Russian oil giant Lukoil had signed an agreement to sell its international assets to the American investment fund Carlyle.
The deal with the American investment fund must be approved by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Department of the Treasury.
This step was necessary for the Russian company, as in October 2025, the United States imposed sanctions on two Russian oil giants, Rosneft and Lukoil. Against this backdrop, several European countries with Lukoil refineries began to look for solutions to prevent the plants from shutting down.
