Reuters: Bankruptcy News: Yukos shareholders lose $340 mln case in Russia

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Yukos shareholders lose $340 mln case in Russia Jun 28th 2012, 16:55 Thu Jun 28, 2012 12:55pm EDT * Case is related to Yuganskneftegaz loans * London court declines "gagging order" MOSCOW, June 28 (Reuters) - Russia's arbitration court ruled on Thursday that state-owned crude oil producer Rosneft was not obliged to repay almost $340 million of loans taken by a unit of Yukos which it acquired after Yukos was forced into bankruptcy by authorities. Once Russia's top crude producer, Yukos declared bankruptcy in 2006 after a multi-billion-dollar back-tax claim from the state. Former Yukos owner and chief executive officer Mikhail Khodorkovsky is serving a prison sentence on fraud and tax evasion convictions. He is due to be released in 2016. The court deemed "null and void" or invalid loans Yukos Capital, a former subsidiary of defunct oil firm Yukos, made to Yuganskneftegaz - the asset, which was acquired by Rosneft as part of the Yukos bankruptcy proceedings. "The verdict of the court of the first instance in Moscow today is hardly surprising given the track record it has in relation to cases featuring Yukos since 2004, which invariably results in judgments in favour of Rosneft, its shareholders or other state entities," Claire Davidson, a spokeswoman for Yukos, told Reuters. "I am advised by our counsel that it is likely that an appeal will be filed." A Rosneft spokesman declined immediate comments. The case is related to loans Yukos Capital made to Yuganskneftegaz (YNG), which were subsequently defaulted upon. YNG had been Yukos' principal production subsidiary, but it was acquired by state-run Rosneft. Davidson also said in a separate case, the Court of Appeal in London rejected Rosneft's attempts to obtain an order gagging a former Yukos group company from referring to a political campaign by the Russian state against Yukos and Khodorkovsky. The ruling is a setback for powerful oil 'tsar' and Rosneft's newly appointed head Igor Sechin, whom Khodorkovsky named as the man who masterminded the Kremlin's destruction of his Yukos business empire, which fell foul of Vladimir Putin during his first term as president. ($1 = 32.9862 Russian roubles) (Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; editing by James Jukwey) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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