Russia's Rosneft to close Essar Oil, Vadinar refinery purchase

New Delhi, Dec 7 (IANS) Russian state-run oil major Rosneft on Wednesday said it will close the $10.9 billion purchase of Essar Oil and the Vadinar refinery within a few weeks.

"We are closing the deal of Essar Oil and Vadinar refinery within a few weeks," Rosneft President and Board Chairman Igor Sechin told reporters here on the sidelines of the Petrotech 2016 hydrocarbons conference.

The deal includes acquisition of Essar Oil's 20 million tonne Vadinar refinery in Gujarat and its retail outlets, as well as the Vadinar Port at an additional $2 billion.

"Our relationship with India has two aspects. Recently, oil companies like Indian Oil Corporation, Oil India and ONGC had acquired stakes in our Vankor and Tass-Yuryakh oil fields. Now, we are also closing in on the acquisition of Vadinar refinery, which is one of the top 10 refineries in the world," Sechin said.

Indian oil companies will hold 29.9 per cent stake in the Taas-Yuryakh field in East Siberia for $1.12 billion, and 23.9 per cent in the Vankor oilfield for $2.02 billion.

The Rosneft-Essar deal was announced during the BRICS leaders summit at Goa in October, following a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The first deal involves the sale of 49 per cent in Essar Oil to Petrol Complex, a subsidiary of Rosneft, while the second envisages the sale of the remaining 49 per cent to Kesani Enterprises, owned by a consortium led by Trafigura and United Capital Partners.

--IANS

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