Lukoil's assets are likely to be bought by an American company

Alexey Belogoryev, Research and Development Director of the Institute for Energy and Finance, commented to InfoTEK on possible new buyers for LUKOIL's foreign assets.

"Chevron or [investment company] Carlyle seem to be the most likely of the so-called contenders in the media. But Carlyle will definitely not be buying for itself, it can act as a buyer for a subsequent more profitable resale, most likely also to American companies. Chevron will buy for itself. It has similar assets from gas stations to exploration and production in many countries of its presence," the expert noted.

At the same time, Belogoryev pointed out possible financial difficulties for Chevron, which completed a major takeover deal for Hess in the summer of 2025.

"How financially the company is ready to make another acquisition, which is also quite large, in my estimation, from $10 to $15 billion, is a question," he added.

The expert stressed that in the case of the purchase of Lukoil's assets by an American company, it would look like a raider takeover.

"If Chevron or some other American company really becomes the buyer, then this, of course, will strongly resemble a raiding operation with the participation of the Donald Trump administration. In other words, the Trump administration, as a government agency, is imposing sanctions that lead to Lukoil needing to sell its assets at a below-market price to a large American company. It all looks very ugly and suspicious," Belogoryev said.

In his opinion, such a deal will further complicate Russian-American relations.

"To put it bluntly, this will further complicate Russian-American relations when they begin to normalize," the expert concluded.

As for Lukoil's peripheral assets, Belogoryev estimates that they may be acquired by national companies in Kazakhstan, Bulgaria and other countries.