Snow Leopard Financial Group’s Post

Russian Office of General Prosecutor sues Shell for one bln euro The lawsuit claims that Shell did not meet its obligations in the Sakhalin Project, and therefore must pay damages MOSCOW, October 15/ The Moscow Arbitration Court has accepted a lawsuit filed by the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office against global oil giant Shell, which seeks more than one billion euro in damages for default on obligations under the Sakhalin-2 project, the court’s press service told TASS. "The amount asked in the lawsuit from the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office against the UK-Dutch Shell stands at more than one billion euro," the press service informed. The lawsuit claims that Shell did not meet its obligations in the Sakhalin Project, and therefore must pay damages. Among those named in the suit are UK-registered Shell plc and Shell Energy Europe Limited, Dutch Shell Global Solutions International B.V., Shell International Exploration & Production B. V., Shell Exploration & Production Services B. V., Shell Sakhalin Services B. V., and Shell Sakhalin Holdings B. V., and Moscow-based Shell Neftegaz Development. Gazprom Export, the Russian Ministry of Energy, former and current Sakhalin-2 project operators, and the Government of the Sakhalin Region act as third parties. Shell Neftegaz Development, the lone Russian defendant in the lawsuit, made the decision to liquidate earlier. Shell participated in the Sakhalin-2 project in Russia, originally owning a 27.5% stake. In June 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree whereby Russia-based Sakhalin Energy LLC became the project operator instead of Sakhalin Energy company. Mitsui and Mitsubishi agreed to keep their stakes in Sakhalin-2, while Shell said it would pull out of the project. Novatek put forward a bid to purchase the stake and received the buyout permit but the deal fell through. As a result, Sakhalin Project, a Gazprom subsidiary, swooped in to buy the stake. Gazprom’s share in the project increased as a result from 50.0000001% to 77.5%. #business #finance #financialservices

Wintershall Dea will sue Russia over the expropriation of its assets. Wintershall Dea has started arbitration proceedings with the Russian Federation and the restructuring of its remaining Russian assets. German Wintershall Dea has started two new arbitration proceedings against Russia in order to protect its Russian assets. The company considers Russia's actions to be expropriation and claims that Russia is violating the investment protection treaty with Germany and the Energy Charter. Recall that in Russia the company had a stake in a joint venture with Gazprom, Achim Development (Urengoyskoye field), and a stake in a joint venture with Gazprom and Austrian OMV in Severneftegazprom (Yuzhno-Russkoye field). But in June of this year, the government decided to transfer the shares of foreign shareholders to Russian jurisdiction; in July, separate LLCs were created for this purpose, and subsequently the shares were to be offered for sale to Russian companies. In addition, Wintershall Dea is one of the shareholders of Nord Stream and investors of Nord Stream 2, but has already reported write-offs of these shares. Finally, there is a joint venture of Gazprom and Wintershall Dea in the Netherlands, Wintershall Noordzee, but Gazprom's share is frozen there. In September, the company closed a deal to transfer its remaining oil and gas assets (excluding Russian ones, with the participation of Russian companies) to the British Harbour Energy. After that, it changed its legal status from JSC (AG in Germany) to LLC (GmbH). Wintershall Dea Global Holding GmbH was transferred shares, which in Russia were transferred to LLC. In general, there is something to sue about. So Wintershall Dea decided to focus on litigation with Russian assets and the sale of the remaining structures. Recall that Germany simply nationalized Gazprom's German assets, and transferred Rosneft's assets to the management of its energy regulator, thus forcing them to sell. And for some reason, in these situations, a bilateral agreement on investment protection or the Energy Charter did not become an obstacle. https://lnkd.in/eBZ-AvRZ #innovation #management #humanresources #technology #digitalmarketing #entrepreneurship #careers #socialmedia #socialnetworking #futurism #startups #branding #advertisingandmarketing #creativity #marketing #sales #motivation #energy #money #sustainability #productivity #gettingthingsdone #leadership #education #strategy #business #europe #mindfulness #inspiration #engineering #africa #india #europeanunion #china #smallbusiness #success #production #oilandgas #collaboration #contentmarketing #research #globaltrade #onlineadvertising #dubai #kenya #abudhabi #socialmediamarketing #manufacturing #climatechange #work #science #logistics #hydrocarbons #shipping #growth #uae #marketresearch #oil #oilandgasindustry #agriculture #designer #oilfield #oilindustry

Germany renews external management of Rosneft Deutschland for six months — ministry On September 16, 2022, German authorities transferred Rosneft Deutschland and RN Refining & Marketing GmbH to be managed by the Federal Network Agency BERLIN/ The German government extended external management of Rosneft Deutschland assets until September 10, the Economy Ministry of the country said. "The federal government on the basis of the energy security law [EnSiG] renews the period of external management of Rosneft Deutschland GmbH [RDG] and RN Refining & Marketing GmbH [RNRM] until September 10, 2024," the ministry said. The decision on the repeated renewal was made after "the Russian owner declared the intention to sell its stakes in RDG and RNRM," it added. On September 16, 2022, German authorities transferred Rosneft Deutschland and RN Refining & Marketing GmbH to be managed by the Federal Network Agency. It established control over stakes in three German refineries. Rosneft announced on the same day that this decision means the full loss of assets and that the Russian company is going to defend its interests in court. #business #finance #financialservices

At least 12 Russian executives, former executives, and shareholders of some of the major local firms – including in the energy sector – received more than $11.4 billion (1 trillion Russian rubles) in dividends in 2023 and so far in 2024, according to data from company filings compiled by Bloomberg. Top of the list is Vagit Alekperov, the former president of Russian oil giant Lukoil, who resigned from the company in 2022 but continues to be a shareholder. Alekperov is estimated to have received $2.1 billion (185 billion rubles) in dividends. Alekperov is sanctioned by the UK, Australia, and New Zealand. Another former Lukoil executive, Leonid Fedun, is also among the businessmen who have gained the most in dividends from Russian companies. Fedun is also a shareholder in Lukoil and is under Western sanctions. Leonid Mikhelson, owner of LNG developer Novatek, and tycoon Gennady Timchenko, who holds a share in the Russian gas company, have also received generous dividends from their stakes in the company, according to Bloomberg’s analysis of public data.

Qatar buys out Rosneft's German assets. https://lnkd.in/ddeRzeQk Doha is in talks with the German government to buy Russia's Rosneft's stake in the Schwedt refinery, which was transferred to the German Federal Network Agency in 2022 for a six-month trust. In March, it became known that Rosneft had begun selling its German assets and wants to complete the process by September. Rosneft's German division owns 54.17% of the Schwedt refinery, on which a significant part of eastern Germany and western Poland depend for fuel production. It is known that the German government and the Qatar Investment Authority have been holding regular talks over the past three months, but the German Ministry of Economics said that a final decision has not yet been made. Qatar, which maintains good relations with Russia, would probably suit both parties as a buyer. In addition, Qatar Investment Authority already owns 19% of Rosneft's shares.

Uniper terminates Russian gas supply contracts after arbitration ruling - Reuters FRANKFURT, June 12 (Reuters) - German utility #Uniper on Wednesday said it had decided to terminate its dormant #Russian #gas supply contracts, officially ending its long-term gas supply relationship with Russia's state-owned #Gazprom. Uniper said the move was made possible following a June 7 ruling by an arbitration court in Stockholm that also awarded it more than 13 billion euros ($14 billion) in damages for the gas volumes not supplied by Gazprom since mid-2022. Uniper had to be bailed out by the German government in 2022 after Gazprom, its former main supplier, first cut and later suspended gas deliveries, forcing the German group to buy replacement volumes at sky-high prices on the spot market. "This ruling provides legal clarity for Uniper. With the right of termination that we received in the arbitration ruling, we are ending the contracts with Gazprom Export," Uniper CEO Michael Lewis said in a statement. Gazprom did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The damage award primarily marks a symbolic victory for Germany, as it is unlikely that large sums will flow, legal sources told Reuters last month, adding the right to terminate dormant contracts would be more relevant ahead of Uniper's planned return to the stock market next year. ($1 = 0.9311 euros) https://lnkd.in/exHujvcK

So it happened. Poland loses approximately PLN 1.3 billion in a coal dispute to an Australian firm. But at least the government allegedly saved €8 million in legal fees. GREENX METALS LIMITED has announced a significant victory in an international arbitration against Poland. The arbitration, conducted under the Polish-Australian Bilateral Investment Treaty and the Energy Charter Treaty, awarded the Australian company compensation of approximately PLN 1.3 billion, excluding interest accruing since the end of December 2019. This ruling has led to a sharp rise in GreenX Metals' share price, reflecting investor confidence following the favorable outcome. The Tribunal has unanimously held that Poland had breached its obligations under the Treaties to the Jan Karski project, entitling GreenX to compensation. In respect of the Dębieńsko project, the Tribunal did not uphold the Claim under the Treaties. All of GreenX’s costs associated with the arbitration were funded on a non-recourse basis from specialist arbitration funder Litigation Capital Management (LCM). The Claim was brought under the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law Rules (UNCITRAL) and the Awards are final and binding on the parties. The UNCITRAL Rules do not provide for an appeal procedure i.e., grant no explicit authority to a panel to reconsider its award. #mining #miningarbitration #mines #poland #arbitration #disputeresolution #litigationfunding #litigationfinance #thirdpartyfunding

Very interesting article about Exxons stake in Guyanna, and the duty to maximize the return on investment from all work and assuming the lion's share of the risk. https://lnkd.in/gN2-cXcz

𝙀𝙭𝙘𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝘿𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙎𝙪𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝘾𝙞𝙩𝙜𝙤 𝙋𝙚𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙡𝙚𝙪𝙢 In a significant development for Citgo Petroleum Corporation, a U.S. federal court is advancing the sale of shares in its parent company, PDVSA Holding, to settle outstanding debts. The court has called for binding bids by Tuesday, indicating a potential shift in ownership for the seventh-largest U.S. refiner. Investors and firms with robust financial backgrounds, including major stakeholders like ConocoPhillips and various mining entities, are showing keen interest. This surge in investor activity could signify a forthcoming change in Citgo’s management and operations. The sale stems from efforts to compensate creditors for nationalizations and unpaid debts dating back to the era of Venezuelan leaders Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro. Despite political opposition from Maduro, who views the auction as a seizure of Venezuelan assets, the sale proceeds under strict court supervision. Citgo, a pivotal asset in Venezuela's foreign holdings and a key player in the U.S. refining sector with a capacity of up to 807,000 barrels per day remains at the center of these complex legal and financial proceedings. The outcome of this auction could reshape its future, offering both challenges and opportunities. #EnergyIndustry #CitgoPetroleum #LegalProceedings #InvestmentOpportunities https://lnkd.in/ghUfkZvh