Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on January 31, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 26, 2026
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Lukoil plans to sell its Burgas refinery in Bulgaria for $2 billion due to sanctions. KazMunayGaz and MOL are among the bidders.
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's second-largest oil producer Lukoil plans to raise around $2 billion from the sale of its Burgas oil refinery in Bulgaria, RIA news agency reported late on Thursday quoting Bulgaria's Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov.
Lukoil did not reply to a request for immediate comment.
Lukoil has been under pressure to sell the 190,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) plant due to sanctions against Russia over the conflict in Ukraine.
Bulgaria has halted Russian crude imports and also restricted exports of all refined products produced from Russian crude from its sole refinery.
It has also imposed a 60% tax on the refinery's profits.
The company has said it was reviewing its strategy with regards to assets in Bulgaria. In November, Litasco, Lukoil's trading arm, said various options were being analysed with independent advisors and a number of "reputable market players".
Bulgaria was the fourth largest buyer of sea-borne Russian oil in 2023, purchasing over 100,000 bpd.
Earlier this month, Kazakhstan's state oil and gas company KazMunayGaz said Lukoil had invited it to participate in a tender to acquire the refinery.
Hungarian oil and gas group MOL has also submitted a bid for the Burgas refinery. Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that MOL was one of seven bidders in the tender.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; editing by Jason Neely)
Lukoil is under pressure to sell the Burgas oil refinery due to sanctions against Russia stemming from the conflict in Ukraine.
Bulgaria has halted Russian crude imports and imposed a 60% tax on the refinery's profits, along with restrictions on exports of refined products produced from Russian crude.
Kazakhstan's KazMunayGaz has been invited to participate in a tender, while Hungary's MOL has also submitted a bid for the refinery.
The Burgas oil refinery has a production capacity of 190,000 barrels per day (bpd).
In 2023, Bulgaria was the fourth largest buyer of sea-borne Russian oil, purchasing over 100,000 bpd.
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