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Russian finance ministry to revive privatisation drive

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Stakes in seven large firms up for sale in 2026, ministry

says

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Ministry eyes $1.2 bln from sales of assets seized in

court

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Russia has picked up pace of domestic assets seizures this

year

(Adds detail in paragraphs 1, 3, 7, 13, changes headline)

By Darya Korsunskaya and Alexander Marrow

March 18 (Reuters) - Russia's finance ministry on

Tuesday said it intends to revive plans for privatisations of

state assets and hopes to sell stakes in seven large companies

next year to raise up to 300 billion roubles ($3.66 billion) for

the federal budget.

Shunned by Western capital since launching the conflict in

Ukraine, Moscow has been seeking ways to foster more domestic

private investment, increase economic efficiency and,

ultimately, bolster budget revenue as Russia spends heavily on

the war.

"We have had proposals for big privatisation," Finance

Minister Anton Siluanov said at a meeting with Rosimushchestvo,

Russia's federal property management agency. "In our view, now

is the time when we can put this issue on the agenda once

again."

In 2010, the finance ministry, then led by reformist Alexei

Kudrin, first launched a multi-year privatisation campaign to

dispose of state assets, but the scheme ultimately stalled. The

state sale of a stake in oil major Rosneft was the

main deal from that time.

In late 2023, Siluanov suggested resurrecting the

privatisation drive. He submitted to the government a list of 30

large state-owned companies and proposed to sell shares in them

with the state keeping a controlling stake, as part of an effort

to reduce pressure on the domestic borrowing market.

The ministry did not name the proposed companies and no

major deals happened. The head of VTB Bank Andrei

Kostin, had suggested oil pipeline monopoly Transneft, Russian

Railways and Russian Post as potential candidates.

COURT SEIZURES

Russian news agencies cited Deputy Finance Minister Alexei

Moiseev as saying the 2023 list was no longer relevant and that

discussions were now centred around about seven large companies,

with deals set for 2026 that could bring in 100-300 billion

roubles ($1.23-$3.67 billion).

Moiseev declined to name which industries the companies were

in and said the overall process would take about 18 months as

some are not traded on the market and investors need time to

familiarise themselves with the assets on offer.

Siluanov said privatisations would intensify this year,

including through court decisions on seized assets.

"In 2025, the receipt of revenues from the sale of such

property is envisaged at no less than 100 billion roubles,"

Siluanov said.

Russia has already quickened the pace of domestic asset

seizures in 2025, with courts ruling early this year that a

leading grain trader, Moscow's Domodedovo airport and strategic

warehouse assets be handed over to the state.

Businesses are concerned at the scope of possible

nationalisations. Alexander Shokhin, head of major business

lobby RSPP, said on Tuesday he remained concerned about the

ongoing uncertainty and lack of means to challenge the state

seizure of property.

Rosimushchestvo, meanwhile, has stepped in to run

foreign-owned assets that Moscow has unilaterally seized in the

last three years, such as those formerly held by Danish brewer

Carlsberg and French yoghurt maker Danone.

($1 = 81.7500 roubles)