Lukoil hands over Chisinau Airport fuel assets to Moldovan state

Russian oil company Lukoil has officially handed over its fuel infrastructure at Chisinau International Airport to the Moldovan government, with the assets now fully returned to state ownership, Ministry of Energy of Moldova reports.

The Public Property Agency and the Chisinau Airport administration completed the inventory process and signed, on January 29, the official documents with Lukoil Moldova, formalizing the restoration of the complex to its 2005 condition. The transfer follows the decision of the Council for Investments of Importance for State Security (CEIISS), dated December 15, 2025, which required the assets to be returned to state control.

At the same meeting, CEIISS banned Lukoil from operating in areas of strategic interest for national security and ordered the reversal of privatization measures applied to the airport’s oil complex in 2005. Lukoil was initially given a deadline of January 9 to complete the transfer. Due to non-compliance, the Council imposed a fine of 5 million lei ($280,000) on January 16, which the company paid the following week. CEIISS also confirmed that Lukoil’s activities in strategic areas are suspended, setting a final deadline for asset handover as January 28.

Following US sanctions imposed by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on November 12, 2025, a temporary management agreement was signed between Chisinau Airport and Lukoil to oversee the assets until the formal handover process was completed.

Regarding fuel stations across Moldova, these are expected to be taken over by the American investment fund Carlyle Group. Under Moldovan law, the newly announced shareholder must seek investment approval, after which CEIISS will issue a formal decision regarding the transaction.

By Vafa Guliyeva