Rosneft announced today that it has closed its acquisition of 50% of Ruhr Oel GmbH from the Venezuelan state oil company Petróleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA).

The European Commission approved acquisition by Rosneft of a 50% stake in Ruhr Oel on March 11, 2011.

The acquisition agreements took effect from May 1, 2011 following completion of necessary closing documentation and procedures. The initial transaction agreements were signed in the Kremlin on 15 October 2010 in the presence of the Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Hugo Chavez.

Commenting on the signed documents, the President of Rosneft Oil Company, Eduard Khudainatov, said: “This is a step towards strengthening of Rosneft’s positions on priority foreign markets. The acquisition means that about 18% of our refining capacity will be located in Europe’s industrial heartland, giving Rosneft access to petroleum product and petrochemical markets in Germany and neighboring countries. By developing cooperation with our partners at BP, Rosneft plans to strengthen the positions of Ruhr Oel by supplying it with Rosneft crude oil, and to enrich our own refining and petrochemical business with the latest European experience and most up-to-date technologies. Completion of the deal exemplifies the long-established partnership relations between Rosneft and BP, which are cemented by many years of joint work.”

Additional information

Ruhr Oel GmbH is a joint refining and marketing company, of which Rosneft and BP each owns 50%. The joint venture has stakes in four refineries in Germany: Gelsenkirchen - 100%; MiRO - 24%; Bayernoil - 25%; and PCK Schwedt – 37.5%. The Gelsenkirchen refinery has petrochemical production capacity of 3.9 million tonnes.

The refining capacity of Ruhr Oel GmbH is approximately 23.2 million tonnes per year, amounting to roughly 22% of Germany’s refining sector. As a result of acquiring a stake in Ruhr Oel GmbH, Rosneft’s total refining volume will increase by 11.6 million tonnes per year, reaching a total of more than 61.6 million tonnes per year.