• OFAC extends Lukoil asset sale deadline to April 1

• $22 billion portfolio overseen amid Russia sanctions

• Proceeds frozen under U.S. jurisdiction pending talks

The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has extended the deadline to complete the sale of Lukoil’s international portfolio from Feb. 28 to April 1. The assets are estimated to be worth about $22 billion.

The move comes despite several rounds of talks in Geneva, Abu Dhabi and Miami that have yet to produce a diplomatic breakthrough between the United States, Russia and Ukraine.

Since Washington imposed sanctions in October on major Russian oil producers, the sale of Lukoil’s foreign assets has been closely overseen by U.S. authorities. According to several sources, the United States has deliberately slowed the sale process to preserve leverage in negotiations over Ukraine.

The U.S. Treasury has imposed strict conditions on the deal. Lukoil cannot receive any immediate payment, and all proceeds must be placed in a frozen account under U.S. jurisdiction to prevent them from supporting Russia’s war effort.

The portfolio includes oil fields, refineries and fuel retail networks in Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. It attracted interest from several oil companies and private equity firms. Ultimately, U.S. investment firm Carlyle Group was selected to acquire the assets, ahead of ExxonMobil and Chevron, which were backed by private and sovereign investors from the Gulf.

The forced divestment has increasingly taken on a political dimension. It is now part of broader discussions over a potential settlement of the war in Ukraine, where sanctions on Russia’s energy sector remain under review.

The White House, the State Department and the Treasury are closely monitoring the transaction, with senior officials increasingly involved. For the U.S. administration, the challenge is to maintain financial pressure on Moscow while retaining a bargaining chip that can be adjusted as talks evolve.

The sale could, in theory, be completed independently of a peace agreement. However, repeated delays suggest that its timing is driven as much by geopolitical considerations as by commercial factors. The new deadline is April 1, with another round of talks expected in March. Whether the deal is finalized will depend less on Carlyle’s ability to complete the transaction than on shifts in the balance of power between Washington, Moscow and Kyiv.

Olivier de Souza