LUKOIL Set to Appeal Romanian Prosecution Accusations

Russia's LUKOIL has dismissed accusations of money laundering and tax evasion brought against the company by Romanian prosecutors who had seized EUR 2 B worth of company assets in an ongoing investigation.

"LUKOIL intends to appeal against the Prosecution Office's order in accordance with the established procedure and counts on impartial investigation of the incident, according to the rules and standards accepted both in Romania and in the EU," the Russian oil giant said in a statement on its website.

Earlier this week, Romanian prosecutors seized LUKOIL assets worth up to EUR 2 B in an investigation into alleged tax evasion and money laundering worth EUR 230 M, according to Reuters.

The company said it had strongly denied accusations of money laundering and tax evasion brought against its Romanian subsidiary Petrotel-LUKOIL and its employees by the Prosecution Office under the Board of Appeal of the city of Ploiesti.

The seized assets included accounts held with Dutch and British banks and Lukoil Europe Holdings Bvatrium Holland shares in the Romanian subsidiary, Reuters said, citing a report by Romanian news agency Agerpress.

Petrotel LUKOIL controls Romania's Petrotel Ploiesti refinery.

Prosecutors claim that "Petrotel LUKOIL's commercial policy and the financial operations between the company and its majority shareholder, Lukoil Europe BV Netherlands, have led to its decapitalization," according to Romania-insider.com.