On Nov. 12, Lukoil fell to 4,900 rubles ($60) per share — the lowest level in two and a half years. The stock dropped 4.6% on the day, 7.4% since the start of the week, and 18.6% since Oct. 23, when the sanctions were imposed. As a result, the market capitalization of Russia’s largest private oil producer shrank by 777 billion rubles (about $9.6 billion).
Lukoil was the session’s biggest decliner as investors feared sanctions could prevent the company from disposing of foreign assets without heavy losses, said Natalia Milchakova, a lead analyst at Freedom Finance.
Lukoil is now preparing for the possibility of losing all of its overseas assets — valued at €14 billion ($16.2 bln), Financial Times reported.
The U.S. Treasury license allowing the completion of transactions with Lukoil expires Nov. 21. By that date, the company is expected to divest its foreign holdings. However, selling everything so quickly is unrealistic, noted Dmitry Kasatkin, managing partner at Kasatkin Consulting; deals of this type typically take 6–12 months.
Washington earlier gave Berlin a six-month window to resolve ownership over Rosneft’s German assets, potentially allowing temporary relief from new U.S. sanctions. The administration of President Donald Trump told German counterparts it is considering a limited, non-extendable general license for Rosneft Deutschland.
Amid this, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Ukraine’s prospects are improving following Trump’s sanctions targeting Russia’s oil sector.
For its part, Lukoil said it intends to sell its foreign assets following the U.S. measures, using the OFAC license that authorizes wind-down operations. The company added it plans, if necessary, to apply for an extension of the license to ensure the uninterrupted operation of its international assets.