The US Treasury Department has granted limited authorizations to facilitate the potential sale of Lukoil’s foreign assets while explicitly permitting continued transactions with the company’s Burgas refinery in Bulgaria.

The new licenses, issued by the US Treasury Department, allow potential buyers to engage in talks with the Russian oil major until December 13 about acquiring its overseas holdings. This decision provides a crucial window for interested bidders, which previously included European major Shell, Carlyle, and Kazakhstan’s KazMunayGas, to pursue a deal, as reported by Reuters.

However, any final sale will only be approved if the transaction completely cuts Lukoil out of the asset and if the proceeds are placed into an inaccessible escrow account for the duration of sanctions.

Furthermore, the Treasury specifically authorized transactions involving Lukoil entities in Bulgaria to continue through April 29, 2026, a move that follows the Bulgarian government’s decision to seize control of the facility.

A Treasury spokesperson confirmed that the measures aim to support the energy security of U.S. partners without benefiting the Russian government.

The action follows sanctions imposed in October on Lukoil and Rosneft—Russia’s two largest oil companies—due to their role in financing Moscow’s war efforts. These sanctions had significantly disrupted Lukoil’s overseas operations, which together represent approximately 0.5% of global oil output.

In a related move, Washington also issued a separate license to safeguard the flow of crude by allowing continued operations involving the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) and the Tengizchevroil project, even if sanctioned Russian firms are involved.

The CPC pipeline is a piece of global infrastructure, transporting around 1.6 million barrels per day (bbl/d), about 1.5% of global supply, from Kazakhstan’s major oil fields through Russian territory. Western powers seek to insulate this key supply route from potential disruption or retaliation.