RusEnergy

RBC, 14.04.2006, Moscow 17:49:11.For the Federal Court of New York's ruling to ban YUKOS from selling off its foreign assets to take effect, similar verdicts have to follow from Dutch and Lithuanian courts, an analyst told RBC commenting on allegations that the U.S. court had prohibited the crippled company's management from disposing of its foreign property. To secure the ban, YUKOS' supervisory manager Eduard Rebgun would need to file suit in a court in Lithuania where YUKOS' largest foreign asset Mazeikiu Nafta is registered, and a court in Holland where YUKOS International UK B.V., the holder of a 53.7-percent stake in the Lithuanian refinery, is registered. Until such decisions are made, the deal for the sale of YUKOS' Lithuanian asset is still in effect, the expert noted. If, however, such suits are filed, then the abovementioned courts will most likely side with the New-York court's ruling in their verdict. Another analyst said the Mazeikiu Nafta deal could drag on now that a fourth figure, YUKOS' court-appointed trustee in bankruptcy Eduard Rebgun, has come into play over the long-disputed refinery sale, joining YUKOS, Lithuania, and a potential buyer of YUKOS' stake in Mazeikiu, each pursuing its own interests.