Exxon and Russia Bury $600 Million Tax Dispute

ExxonMobil and the Russian government have settled a long-running tax dispute worth more than $600 million, the Russian finance ministry said in a statement sent to French news agency AFP.

An amicable agreement was signed on Sept. 12 between Russia and ExxonMobil,” the statement said. “The parties have reached a mutually beneficial compromise."

The case dates back to 2015, when the US oil and petrochemicals group, then headed by the current US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, challenged the tax bill on its Sakhalin-1 offshore project in Russia, saying it was too high.

According to published figures cited by news agencies, Exxon and Japan’s Sodeco each own 30%of the venture, while Russian oil conglomerate Rosneft and India’s ONGC each own 20%.

Two projects in which ExxonMobil was involved were interrupted by US economic sanctions against Russia, following its annexation of Crimea. Both the current leadership and Tillerson privately were seen as being angered by the US Congress’s recent decision to impose more extensive sanctions on Russia.