Shell has revived the sale of its stake in a controversial Berlin oil refinery.
The PCK Schwedt refinery is Germany’s fourth-largest and supplies 90 per cent of Berlin’s fuel.
The German government took over control of the refinery from Russian-state oil giant Rosneft last year. Shell had originally put its 37.5 per cent stake up for sale back in 2021.
Russia links: The German government took over control of the PCK Schwedt refinery from Russian-state oil giant Rosneft last year. Shell originally put its 37.5% stake up for sale in 2021
But the process was scuppered by uncertainty over the future of the refinery after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last February.
The sale’s relaunch was made possible after the German government last September put the German unit of Rosneft under a trusteeship as part of a wave of European sanctions on Russia following Moscow’s invasion.
That included Rosneft’s 54.17 per cent of the Schwedt refinery.
Shell is understood to have shared information about the refinery’s operations, costs and revenues with potential buyers.
The refinery has operated at a reduced rate in recent months as it struggles to replace crude oil supplies delivered from Russia through the Druzhba pipeline, which were halted as part of the EU sanctions.