Russian Billionaire Sues French Customs for Seizing His Yachts
A Russian billionaire is suing French authorities in an effort to win back access to two of his yachts, arguing customs officials did not have the right to immobilize them despite him being on an EU sanctions list, his lawyer said on Thursday.Alexey Kuzmichev, one of the main shareholders of Russia's Alfa-Bank, who was sanctioned by the EU in March for his ties to President Vladimir Putin, appealed the seizure of his ships "La Petite Ourse" and "La Petite Ourse II", held in the Cote D'Azur towns of Antibes and Cannes, respectively."If you own an asset for your personal use, like a yacht, you have the right to make use of it even though it's frozen"…
Wintershall Dea Writes Off $1.1B Nord Stream 2 financing
German oil and gas firm Wintershall Dea, one of the five co-funders of Nord Stream 2, on Wednesday said it is writing off its 1 billion euros ($1.11 billion) financing in the gas pipeline that was suspended last week.The management board of Wintershall Dea said on Wednesday it would no longer be advancing or implementing further projects in Russia and would be stopping payments to Russia immediately.The company, co-owned by BASF and Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman's investor group LetterOne, said it would remain involved in the existing Yuzhno Russkoye and Achimov natural gas production pr
Wintershall, DEA Complete Merger
The merger between oil and gas firms Wintershall Holding GmbH and Deutsche Erdoel AG (DEA) has been completed, creating the largest independent exploration and production company in Europe.Wintershall DEA will be headquartered in Hamburg, with activities across Europe, Latin America, North Africa and the Middle East. Regulatory approvals have been granted by nine countries including Germany, Norway, the UK and Russia.“We are a European champion and are making an important contribution to Europe’s energy security,” explains Mario Mehren, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Wintershall Dea.Following the approvals granted by all relevant authorities, shareholders BASF and LetterOne successfully completed the merger on May 1, 2019.
Russian Oligarch Responds to UK in North Sea Deal Row
Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman's LetterOne fund said on Wednesday it had provided Britain's energy ministry with a detailed response as part of its attempt to complete a deal to purchase assets in the North Sea. Britain has blocked the deal citing potential new sanctions against Russia and has given the fund seven days to come up with new proposals or face calls to sell the assets to a third party. LetterOne is buying the assets from Germany's RWE. "We... continue to engage with the department (of energy). We will leave no stone unturned to find a solution," LetterOne said. (Reporting by Dmitry Zhdannikov. Editing by Jane Merriman)
UK Will Force Fridman to sell N.Sea Assets
Britain is ready to force the sale of Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman's recently acquired North Sea energy assets unless it receives unspecified assurances within the next week, Prime Minister David Cameron's spokesman said on Thursday. Britain on Wednesday wrote to Fridman's investment vehicle saying he had seven days to explain why he should be allowed to retain ownership of North Sea assets just acquired from German utility RWE. "If assurances are not supplied, we've set out our position and our intention to act, and the prime minister entirely agrees with that," Cameron's spokesman told reporters. RWE on Monday finalised the sale of its oil and gas production unit DEA UK to Fridman's investment vehicle LetterOne…
Former BP Boss Browne is DEA Chairman
FRANKFURT, March 3 (Reuters) - DEA, the oil and gas company that German utility RWE sold to Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman, has appointed former BP boss John Browne as its new supervisory board chairman. Fridman's investment vehicle LetterOne bought the firm from RWE in a 5.1 billion euro ($5.7 billion) deal finalised on Monday, brushing aside British opposition against the sale of some licences held by DEA in the North Sea. The transaction was first announced a year ago, coinciding with Western sanctions imposed on Russia over the Ukraine crisis, sparking concern in some EU countries about whether a European oil and gas business should fall into Russian hands.
