Russia’s second largest oil company has broken with President Vladimir Putin.
Lukoil, which produces more than 2% of the world’s crude oil and employs more than 100,000 people, has called for an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The company’s board of directors said in a statement to shareholders, employees and customers that it was “demanding a speedier end to the armed conflict”.
“We express our sincere empathy for all victims affected by this tragedy. We strongly support a lasting ceasefire and the solution of problems through serious negotiations and diplomacy,” the council added.
Lukoil chairman and CEO Vagit Alekperov is one of the richest men in Russia. Most of Lukoil’s shares are owned by former Caspian oil rig employee and deputy, Leonid Fedun, according to Reuters.
The company has operations in dozens of countries around the world and is Russia’s second-largest oil company, behind state-owned giant Rosneft. It now faces huge challenges as traders shun Russian oil for fear of running afoul of Western sanctions, although they do not directly target fossil fuel exports.
London-listed Lukoil shares lost about 99% of their value after the invasion. Trading in the company’s shares was suspended on Thursday.
The oil giant already faces boycott calls in the United States, where there are 230 Lukoil gas stations owned by American franchisees. Most service stations that carry the Lukoil brand are in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Earlier this week, Russian billionaires Mikhail Fridman and Oleg Deripaska also broke with the Kremlin and called for an end to the war. Fridman, who was born in western Ukraine, wrote in a letter to staff that he wanted the “bloodshed to end”.
Fridman is chairman of the Alfa Group, a private conglomerate operating primarily in Russia and former Soviet states covering banking, insurance, retail and mineral water production.
The billionaire is also chairman of Alfa Bank, Russia’s fourth-largest financial services company and its largest private bank. Alfa Bank was hit last week by sanctions that will prevent it from raising money in the US market.
Deripaska, who was sanctioned by the United States in 2018, made his fortune in aluminum.
— Kunyi Yang contributed to this story.
Source: CNN Brasil
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