Germany to seize control over two Rosneft subsidiaries

The German government has taken control of two subsidiaries of Russian oil giant Rosneft, Der Spiegel reports, citing the German ministry of economy.

The federal network regulator will become the temporary trust manager of Rosneft Deutschland GmbH (RDG) и RN Refining & Marketing GmbH for six months, until February 2023.

The decision enters into force on 16 September. The ministry explained that it had decided to hand over the Rosneft subsidiaries under state control to ensure the operation of refineries in Schwedt, Karlsruhe, and in Vohburg. The German ministry stated that essential service providers and clients refused to work with Rosneft, its subsidiaries in Germany and oil refineries with the company’s participation.

The German law on energy security serves as the legal basis for this decision, the ministry underlines.

Rosneft Deutschland accounts for about 12% of the country’s capacity for processing crude oil. It is one of Germany’s largest single oil processing companies. The oil refinery provides fuel to most of north-eastern Germany.

According to the ministry, German subsidiaries of Rosneft, RDG and RNRM, export crude oil from Russia to Germany to the tune of several hundred million euro every month.

In late May, EU leaders approved the sixth package of sanctions against Russia, which includes an import ban on two-thirds of Russian oil. Head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen stated at the time that Germany and Poland had vowed to suspend pipeline oil supply by the end of the year, thus banning 90% of Russian oil supply. The US, Canada and the UK also introduced an embargo on Russian oil.