site.btaUS Extends Authorization for Transactions with Lukoil’s Foreign Subsidiaries Until April 24, 2027

The US Department of the Treasury has extended until April 24, 2027, the authorization for certain transactions involving the Bulgarian subsidiaries of Russian oil company Lukoil, according to the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

The new General License No. 130B allows certain operations to continue at the Burgas refinery, the fuel station network, and the companies supplying aviation and marine fuel. The authorization replaces the previous license, issued in April, which is set to expire on Friday.

US authorities have also issued General License No. 128D, authorizing certain transactions involving Lukoil fuel stations located outside Russia.

These exemptions do not constitute a lifting of sanctions against the Russian oil company. They do not cover transactions involving other sanctioned entities or activities that remain prohibited under the US sanctions regime.

The US imposed sanctions on Lukoil and Rosneft in October 2025 in an effort to increase pressure on Moscow to end the war in Ukraine. Subsequently, Lukoil, Russia’s second-largest oil producer, announced its intention to sell its international assets.

Since then, US authorities have repeatedly extended authorizations for certain company operations while efforts to find buyers continue.

The first special authorization for the Bulgarian subsidiaries was issued in November 2025, after the Bulgarian government appointed Rumen Spetsov, former Executive Director of the National Revenue Agency, as special commercial administrator of Lukoil’s business operations in the country.

In the same month, Bulgaria’s National Assembly adopted legislative amendments allowing assets placed under special administration to be sold without the consent of their Russian owner.

At the end of February, Litasco, the Switzerland-based direct owner of the Bulgarian subsidiaries and a wholly owned subsidiary of Lukoil, warned Bulgaria of possible arbitration proceedings.