KSE Institute reports only 304 out of over 1,500 companies finally leaving Russia
Only 304 out of more than 1,500 foreign companies that own (or owned) assets in Russia have exited the country, the Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) Institute reported on Dec. 18.
Another 320 companies are trying to leave Russia, having publicly announced their intentions or suspended operations, KSE said.
The largest companies that have fully withdrawn generated $82 billion in revenue, while those in the process of leaving have generated $65 billion.
The estimated cost of "exits" ranges from $16.7 billion to $21 billion, according to the KSE. Given the undisclosed deals, the amount could potentially approach $25 billion.
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"For example, a number of companies (Heineken, Nissan, OBI Group, Renault, Tetra Pak) were sold for EUR 1,” the study says.
“At the same time, others, such as Carlsberg Group and Danone, were effectively nationalized by the Russian authorities."
Among the largest deals were the sale of the Russian classifieds business Avito ($2.4 billion), owned by the Dutch investment group Prosus, and the sale of Eni’s stake (40% or $1.8 billion) in Rosneft’s Arctic gas project.
Read also: Global companies slow to exit Russian market despite continued invasion
Of the 386 legal entities owned by nearly three hundred Western companies, 25% were purchased by individuals, and almost half by local top management. Most of the buyers (94%) were from the U.S., while others were from China, Turkey, and the UAE.
The KSE highlights that some companies sent $3.6 billion worth of goods to Russia immediately before the exit and $0.4 billion after it. Indirect supplies amounted to $2.5 billion and $1.4 billion, respectively. The KSE points out L’Occitane, a French cosmetics manufacturer that continued to trade through intermediaries after its withdrawal.
Technip Energies continues to make a significant contribution to the Arctic LNG-2 project related to liquefied natural gas production, and Baker Hughes shipped oil and gas drilling equipment to Russia after the announcement of its withdrawal.
Overall, 304 (8.3% of the total number of records in the KSE database or 23.6% of companies that generated revenue in Russia in 2022) international companies have completely ceased operations in the Russian Federation as of Dec. 17, 2023.
Western companies that announced their withdrawal from Russia after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine suffered a combined loss of $103 billion, The New York Times reported on Dec. 17.
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