The sale discussions, which began in 2023, concluded months ago
International News via Reuters:
British oil major Shell has ended negotiations to sell its stake in Germany’s Russia-linked Schwedt refinery to Polish energy group Unimot, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter
• The sale discussions, which began in 2023, concluded months ago, the Bloomberg report said.
• Shell declined to comment
• Unimot, which emerged as a possible buyer of Shell’s 37.5% stake in Germany’s PCK Schwedt refinery, did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment outside regular business hours.
• The refinery, majority-owned by Russia’s Rosneft, has been a problem for the German government ever since Berlin ended energy ties with Moscow in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
• Germany put Rosneft’s 54.17% stake under trusteeship, essentially giving the government control over the asset while technically leaving ownership in the Russian group’s hands — a move that prompted Shell to revive its sale plans.
• According to Bloomberg, Shell and Unimot had been in advanced talks as of February, before ending talks.
Reporting by Sumedha Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore and Joyjeet Das
