Bashkortostan head: Bashneft state stake mustn't be sold in unstable economy
MOSCOW. Aug 17 (Interfax) - Sale of the state stake in Bashneft is not an option given today's unstable economy, Bashkortostan President Rustem Khamitov said in an interview on Rossiya 24 television.
"The government will make the decision on privatization, pending a calmer situation in all the unstable economic areas. After this the options for privatizing Bashneft can be discussed. But today, given the unstable economy, Bashneft mustn't be sold," he said.
Khamitov reiterated that Bashkortostan was not considering selling its stake in Bashneft. "We're not currently considering this for several reasons. We think that in time, Bashneft will grow in value, but there is no point selling at a time when the market oil prices and the ruble's exchange rate are unstable. What appears to be worth a lot today will be worth less tomorrow. There's no point in us even thinking about selling in this case," he said.
Bashkortostan's public had welcomed the reinstatement of the republic's ownership of a stake in Bashneft, he said. "We're very grateful to the country's president for the fact that the stake was returned. And our residents have no doubt that the republic's possession of it means stability and reliability. The moral consequences, the costs would have been very high," he said.