Some foreign companies are beginning to announce their disengagement from Russia, a movement initiated by the oil sector, but for many groups present in the country, it seems difficult to repatriate factories or supermarkets overnight.
Sunday, on the fourth day of the Russian invasion in Ukraine, the British oil company BP announced that it was disengaging from the Russian giant Rosneft, in which it holds a 19.75% stake, denouncing “an act of aggression which tragic consequences across the region”.
Among those following in its footsteps, its compatriot Shell indicated on Monday that it was parting with its shares in several joint projects with the Russian group Gazprom in Russia, in particular its participation in the Sakhalin-2 gas project in the Russian Far East. .
Their Norwegian competitor Equinor announced the end of its investments in Russia and its withdrawal from its joint ventures in the country. Equinor is 67% controlled by the Norwegian state, whose sovereign fund will also freeze its investments in Russia.
The world’s leading manufacturer of heavy goods vehicles, the German Daimler Truck, for its part, suspended “until further notice” its activities in Russia, including cooperation “of a civil nature” with the truck producer Kamaz, which also supplies l Russian army.
“Stuck”
Despite everything, “it is very difficult for any company with an activity in Russia to leave now”, summarizes Guntram Wolff, director of the Brussels think tank Bruegel, to AFP. “Already because the Russian central bank prohibits the sale of financial assets, and also because, even if these sales were authorized, the ruble has lost its value so much that the losses would be enormous,” he points out.
Several analysts agree that it will be difficult for BP to sell its shares at their real value ($14 billion at the end of 2021). The group has also warned that it will record a charge in its accounts for the first quarter of 2022, which will be published in May.
“For many companies, the question of exiting does not arise, they are stuck, because they have significant holdings and assets in Russia which are not ‘liquid’ at all”, production sites, for example, that they cannot close or resell “overnight”, adds Sébastien Jean, director of the Center for Prospective Studies and International Information.
The war in Ukraine and the heavy sanctions imposed on Russia by Western countries are plunging foreign groups “into great uncertainty about what will be the evolution of the Russian economy in the months to come, and also about what will be the sanctions in return from the Russians. Many may fear seizures of some of their assets or expropriations”, underlines Sébastien Jean, who puts things into perspective by adding that, however, the Russian market “is not large enough for it to be a structural danger for many companies”.