Sofia to comply with U.S. sanctions regime in Lukoil case

The fate of the Lukoil Group in Bulgaria will depend on negotiations between the United States and Russia on ending the war in Ukraine, Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov said in an interview for BNR. Asked whether the government intends to buy the refinery if sanctions against Russian oil and gas companies are extended, Rosen Zhelyazkov replied that all steps undertaken by the Bulgarian state aim to convince the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) that the logic and purpose of the sanctions are being observed. “Although this places Bulgaria in a position of compliance with a foreign regime, it is the only way to ensure that the refinery can continue to operate”, said Rosen Zhelyazkov.

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Bulgaria's Ministry of Energy has not received any official expressions of investor interest in the assets of Lukoil Bulgaria, Energy Minister Zhecho Stankov told bTV. 

Edited by Ivo Ivanov

Translated by Kosadin Atanasov