Emergence of a Putin-sponsored Oil and Gas Aristocracy: Clans at War for Property

Putin is imputed to launch active nationalization of the oil and gas sector. In reality we see a reverse process – assets are being privatized or prepared for privatization.

Thus, the task to nationalize the sector seems to be not on the agenda any longer. Nationalization was an interim transit phase in the process of changing owners in the oil and gas industry.

At first, assets were taken by the state and now they are to be transferred to other private owners. However, this process is not very fast.

Nowadays state companies receive a lot of privileges and licenses, which is like taking assets from one state pocket and putting them into another. However, there are private shareholders practically in all state companies and their stakes may rise. This is another way to privatize the industry.

In a new report of the National Energy Security Fund you will find detailed answers to the following questions:

• Main participants of the property redistribution process

  • Changes in the layout of forces of major administrative and political groups

• Conflicts between Gazprom and Rosneft over assets

  • How state companies are “swelling” on the eve of a new stage of privatization

• Surfacing of “oil and gas Atlantis”

  • Unexpected exposure of shadow empires
  • Motives and consequences of this process
  • Sources of money to buy out state property

• Creation of family clans in the oil and gas sector

  • Prototype of a new aristocracy inheriting assets

• Surfacing of “oil and gas Atlantis”

  • Struggle for Gazprom Neft
  • Transfer of assets out of Gazprom

• The future of private oil and gas companies

  • Strategy of their survival
  • Secrets of Surgutneftegaz
  • LUKOIL’s path
  • Possible fate of the Tatar and Bashkir oil and petrochemical sector

   

  The contents of the report:

  Introduction.New Aristocracy and Its Resource Base	3
  Chapter 1. Gazprom and Rosneft: From Nationalization to Gradual Privatization	8
  1.1. Playing Shares	8
  1.2.Readying for Privatization of Assets	10
  1.3. Temporary Beneficiaries from Sales of Gazprom’s Property	12
  1.4. Rosneft on Its Way to New Selling of Shares	15
  Chapter 2. Bank Rossiya Group’s Assets Becoming Known to the Public: Preparation for New Acquisitions	18
  Chapter 3. Oil and Gas Families	29
  Chapter 4. Possible Victims: the Fate of Independent Oil Firms	32
  4.1. LUKOIL: Friendship with Non-residents	32
  4.2.TNK-BP: Shield From the Past	36
  4.3. Russneft: Things Haven’t Got Forward an Inch	41
  4.4. Bashkiria Oil Assets: New Transit Proprietor	42
  Chapter 5. Optimal Scenario of Developments For the Current Elite.	49

  Date of issue	October 27, 2009