Cyprus-registered energy company GOI Energy won the tender for the sale of a large oil refinery complex ISAB in Sicily, owned by the Russian corporation Lukoil, offering 1.5 billion euros for it.
According to media reports, GOI Energy is headed by Israeli businessman Mikhail (Michael) Bobrov, co-owner of the Israeli company Green Oil Energy and a major shareholder of the Haifa refinery. Israeli media noted that GOI Energy belongs to the private investment fund Argos New Energy, most of whose investors are Israelis.
Together with GOI Energy, the Swiss trading company Trafigura participated in the tender, which will ensure the supply of oil to the refinery. Bobrov was previously a representative of Trafiugura, including in Israel.
The deal to sell the ISAB refinery is a forced step for Lukoil. The company itself is private and not under international sanctions, but the European embargo on the purchase of Russian oil makes it impossible for Lukoil to supply its own refinery. The Italian government issued an ultimatum, demanding that the company sell the refinery under the threat of nationalization.