As the war between Russia and Ukraine enters a more dangerous stage, 20 Western companies across different sectors have agreed to sell their Russian assets or hand them over to local managers.
They took this decision in compliance with sanctions over the Ukraine conflict and deal with threats from the Kremlin that foreign-owned assets may be seized.
The moves, part of a broader corporate exodus from Russia, are likely to prompt concerns that Russian companies and institutions are snapping up prize assets at bargain prices.
The exiting companies by sector that have secured deals to sell their businesses in Russia are as follows.
Automobile
Continental AG
The car parts manufacturer said on May 22 it has sold its Russian tyre plant to Russian holding company S8 Capital.
Renault.
The French carmaker sold its majority stake in Avtovaz to the Russian state in 2022, reportedly for only one rouble but with a six-year option to buy it back.
Volkswagen
The German carmaker said on May 19 it has completed the sale of its Kaluga production plant and its local subsidiaries to Art-Finance LLC, supported by auto-dealer group Avilon.
Banks
Societe Generale
The French bank sold its Russian business Rosbank in May of last year to Russia’s Interros Capital, taking a 3.1 billion euro ($3.38 billion) hit.
Energy
Basf
The German chemicals group said in January it would take a 7.3 billion euro writedown as its Wintershall Dea energy business pulls out of Russia. BASF owns 67 per cent of the voting rights in Wintershall, with the rest being held by Letter One, a holding company controlled by Mikhail Fridman.
Shell
The British energy and petrochemical company last year completed the sale of its Russian retail and lubricants business to Russia’s Lukoil.
Russia’s government has approved the sale of Shell (LON:RDSa)’s former 27.5 per cent stake in the Sakhalin-2 energy project to Russian energy firm Novatek for 94.8 billion roubles, a government order showed on April 12.
Food & Beverages
AB InBev
The brewer said on April 22, 2022, it would sell its non-controlling stake in its Russian joint venture AB InBev Efes, taking a $1.1 billion impairment charge.
Carlsberg
Carlsberg (OTC:CABGY), the Western brewer most exposed to Russia, said last year it expected a writedown of about 9.9 billion Danish crowns after announcing a sale of its business in the country.
Carlsberg said it expects to have found a buyer and signed an agreement by June.
Mining
Kinross
The Toronto-based miner in June last year sold all of its Russian assets to Highland Gold Mining Group for $340 million in cash, half of the previously announced price.
Restaurants & Retails
Amrest
The restaurant operator said on May 15 it has completed the sale of its KFC restaurant business in Russia to Smart Service for 100 million euros.
Authentic Brands Group
The Russian business of Authentic Brands Group-owned Reebok has been taken over by Turkey’s FLO retailing in May last year according to Kommersant Daily.
Inditex
The Russian government had approved a deal for Spain’s Inditex (BME:ITX) to sell its Russian business to a UAE-based buyer. Inditex had more than 500 stores in the country and agreed to sell them in October.
McDonald’s Corp
The U.S.-based restaurant chain sold last year its business in Russia after more than 30 years of operating in the country, taking a charge of $1.28 billion.
OTHERS
Henkel
The consumer goods company said in April it has sold its business in Russia for around 600 million euros to a consortium of local financial investors.
Huhtamaki
The Finnish maker of packaging for food and beverages sold its operations in Russia in September for 151 million euros to Espetina Ltd, a company belonging to the owner of McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) former restaurants in Russia.
Imperial Brands
The British tobacco group announced the transfer of its Russian business to investors based in Russia in April 2022.
Maersk
The shipping and logistics group has agreed to sell its two logistics sites in Russia to IG Finance Development Limited.
In August last year, Maersk sold a 30.75 per cent stake in Russian port operator Global Ports Investments to Russia’s largest container operator Delo Group.
Schneider Electric
The French electrical equipment maker closed the sale of its operations in Russia to local management in September last year.
Store Enso
The Finnish forestry firm has completed its exit from Russia with the sale of three corrugated packaging plants to local management, it said on May 16, 2022.
YIT
The Finnish builder completed the sale of its businesses in Russia to Etalon Group in May 2022.
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