The terms of the privatization of Russian oil giant Rosneft, which the Financial Times called “a triumph for President Vladimir Putin” (since he managed to make the deal despite Western sanctions), were finalized on Dec. 10. And indeed, the deal could turn out to be a triumph for Russia’s President – a personal financial triumph.
The buyer – a consortium comprising Swiss oil trader Glencore and the Qatar Investment Authority sovereign wealth fund (which itself is a major shareholder in Glencore) – will pay 10.2 billion euro for the 19.5 percent of Rosneft that was previously owned by the Russian government. A critical detail emerged shortly after the details of the deal were leaked on Dec. 6: Glencore will only pay 300 million euro, the Qataris will throw in 2.5 billion euro, with the remaining 7.4 billion euro will be financed by banks. In addition to the ownership stake, Glencore is getting the rights to 220,000 barrels of Rosneft oil per day for the next five years.
