Five House Republicans led by U.S. Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX) called on U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to ensure that the sale of Russian energy giant Lukoil’s international assets does not allow those holdings to fall back into Moscow’s hands or those of another U.S. adversary.
“Your leadership in imposing and enforcing new sanctions on major Russian energy companies, including Lukoil, has demonstrated our resolve to disrupt Russia’s war machine and bring an end to its longstanding and widespread aggression,” wrote the lawmakers in a March 10 letter sent to Bessent.
Lukoil, which is involved in the exploration, production, refining, marketing, and distribution of oil and gas in Russia and in more than 30 countries around the world, is being compelled by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control to divest its assets outside of Russia to non-blocked entities.
The divested assets could include operations and minority interests in highly strategic oil and gas fields in Azerbaijan, Congo, Egypt, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Nigeria, Uzbekistan, and other countries, according to the letter, which points out that Lukoil International GmbH (LIG), which holds all of Lukoil’s assets outside of Russia, also has interests in pipelines and owns and operates refineries and retail stations across Europe.
Rep. Pfluger and his colleagues, who include U.S. Rep. Julie Fedorchak (R-ND), say there’s been a significant decline in Russia’s oil and gas reserves in the wake of recent sanctions, and they argue that robust American energy leadership is essential to both national security and global stability.
The group also cited growing instability in Iran and across the Middle East as a further reminder of why the United States must remain a dominant force in global energy markets.
“American energy dominance is critical to our national security, and as the events of the last several days in Iran and the broader Middle East region have highlighted, our ability to promote peace through strength is enabled by our role in facilitating the stable and secure supply of energy to world markets,” they wrote. “In this increasingly complex geopolitical era, we believe America’s energy companies, and not those of our adversaries, should continue leading the way.”
The lawmakers urged the Treasury Department to work with the White House and the U.S. Departments of Energy, State, and Defense to “scrutinize every detail of the various proposals to ensure that any sale of LIG’s assets ‘completely severs’ ties with the Russian parent company, paving the way for American energy companies to meet this moment with the urgency and precision it so deserves.”