According to him, the PMI group was in talks with at least three “serious” potential buyers, but “negotiations have stalled.”
He also pointed to a provision on the sale of Russian assets by foreign companies, allowing the Kremlin to dictate the valuation and terms of the agreements.
According to the top manager, he is obliged to the shareholders to preserve the value of the business.
“I know that some … think that we have decided not to leave, but we still have not made any decisions, because … we cannot fulfill them,” Olchak said.
“When I say that I’m leaving or I’m not leaving, it doesn’t matter at all, because we tried last year, but everything got stuck,” he added.
Olchak added that it is “very likely” to require a buyback clause to be taken into account if the assets are to be sold.
The price of Philip Morris’s Russian business was not disclosed, but the company’s report said that the company had $2.5 billion in assets in Russia.
In addition to Marlboro, the company sells in Russia cigarette brands such as L&M and Chesterfield, a smokeless IQOS product.
According to the FT, among the tobacco companies, the Russian business sold only Imperial Brands, which produces Davidoff cigarettes, recording a loss of $475 million.
British American Tobacco said that the process of withdrawing from Russia could be delayed until 2024. In turn, Japan Tobacco does not plan to leave Russia.
As reported, Philip Morris announced plans to exit the Russian market for the first time in March 2022. The company has since retired a number of its cigarette brands from the market.
In addition, plans to produce over 20 billion TEREA stock (for IQOS ILUMA) in Russia have been canceled and associated ongoing investments of 150 million US dollars.
