DüSSELDORF 16.08.2018 Verwaltungsgebäude des Unternehmens der Uniper SE in Düsseldorf im Bundesland Nordrhein-Westfalen, Deutschland. Weiterführende Informationen bei: E.ON Energy from Waste AG, Uniper SE, ergo Unternehmenskommunikation GmbH&Co.KG. // Administration building of the company of Uniper SE on E.ON-Platz in Duesseldorf in the state North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Further information at: E.ON Energy from Waste AG, Uniper SE, ergo Unternehmenskommunikation GmbH&Co.KG. www.uniper.energy Foto: Hans Blossey
Russia’s Putin confiscates assets of Fortum, Uniper
President Vladimir Putin signed a decree establishing temporary control of assets belonging to Finland’s Fortum, and its former German subsidiary Uniper.
The move will add to confusion over the fate of other western firms in Russia amid plans for more sanctions on the country.
Moscow has reacted angrily to reports that G7 nations could impose an almost total ban on exports to Russia.
The EU is also looking at using frozen Russian assets to help rebuild Ukraine. Now the decree says Moscow has to take action to counter unspecified actions by the U.S. and others. It outlines possible retaliation if Russian overseas assets are seized. But it also leaves much unclear.
Fortum owned power plants and other facilities in Russia which were valued at around $1.9 billion late last year. It says it thinks the decree doesn’t affect legal ownership of those assets.
Uniper has five power stations in the country.
Both firms have been trying to find a way to exit the country altogether, but may now have been overtaken by events.
Kremlin has since doubled down, threatening to expand seizure of Western assets in its retaliatory moves against crippling sanctions from the West.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the measure could be expanded to other assets if necessary; adding however that the decree did not concern ownership, just the power to manage the assets.
“The decree adopted is a response to the aggressive actions of unfriendly countries,” Peskov said. “This initiative mirrors the attitude of Western governments towards foreign assets of Russian companies.”
Putin’s decree “does not deal with property issues and does not deprive the owners of their assets because the external management is temporary and only means that the original owner no longer has the right to make management decisions,” he said.
“The main purpose of the decree is to form a compensation fund for the possible application of reciprocal measures in response to the illegal expropriation of Russian assets abroad,” he said.
