AP
Reports: Banks Have Right on Yukos Loan
Wednesday September 28, 12:29 pm ET
Reports: Moscow Court Upholds Right of Western Banks to Reclaim Loan From Yukos
MOSCOW (AP) -- A Moscow court Wednesday upheld a request by a syndicate of Western banks to force the shattered Yukos oil company to repay an outstanding US$475 million (euro396 million) loan, news agencies reported.
ADVERTISEMENT
The Moscow Arbitration Court's decision allows the 14 banks to enforce a claim granted in June by London's High Court, which found that Yukos had defaulted on the loan, which totaled US$1 billion (euro833 million) when issued in 2003.
Yukos, which was once Russia's largest oil producer, paid down more than half of the original amount, but is not fighting to stay afloat while its assets remain frozen amid ongoing efforts by Russian tax authorities to claim billions in back taxes.
Spokeswoman Claire Davidson said the banks, led by France's Societe Generale, had a legitimate right to protect their interests, and that the company was still committed to repaying the loan in full. Since May, however, Yukos has been unable to pay interest because of liquidity problems, she said.
"Yukos has never denied that it owes the consortium of banks money and is committed to repaying it," Davidson said by telephone from London.
The tax probe led to Yukos' biggest fields being transferred to the state in December, while the company's founder, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, was sentenced in May to nine years in prison on tax evasion and fraud charges. His jail term was reduced to eight years last week.
Observers have said the case is a Kremlin drive to quash Khodorkovsky's political aspirations and secure control over the crucial oil sector.
