At the moment, there is great uncertainty regarding “Lukoil”. The refinery announced that it would sell its assets in full, there was talk of the Azerbaijani company. But things are happening differently – they chose a large Scandinavian fund, but there are suspicions of Russian influence there. International comments indicate that there are no proven Russian connections with “Gunvor”, but the fact that there are no public ones does not mean that OFAC will agree. This was stated by Tihomir Bezlov, senior analyst at the Center for the Study of Democracy, in the studio of “Your Day” on NOVA NEWS.
"There is another detail. One of the things that has an impact on the Bulgarian fuel market is the behavior of the Serbian refinery “NIS Petrol”, where it became clear that there will be no exceptions and the first sanctions have been imposed. It is obvious that the sanctions are starting to be felt”, he added.
Bezlov pointed out that it should be clear whether the US administration will agree to a deal for the assets of “Lukoil” and “Rosneft”. Another important question is how it will react to our proposal for a special administrator and a postponement of the sanctions, the expert added.
“The “Neftokhim” refinery is the largest in the Balkans and has a very serious impact on the market. Its exit from the supply regime will create a problem not only in the Balkans, but also in Turkey, he added.
Energy expert Viktor Minchev said that the new sanctions block the ability of “Lukoil” to pay and that is why it is selling its refineries. He is of the opinion that Bulgaria is looking for a solution so that money does not go to Russia, but it is important who the buyer will be.
“When such a deal happens, there will be a restructuring in the company. It remains to be seen what the effect will be”, he added.
Minchev emphasized that not only the Bulgarian services, but also OFAC must approve the future deal.