UPDATE: Sistema owner says hopes for peaceful settlement with Rosneft

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MOSCOW, Oct 5 (PRIME) -- The main shareholder of multi-industry holding Sistema Vladimir Yevtushenkov hopes for a peaceful settlement of a court case against the holding by oil company Rosneft, he told reporters on Thursday.

“Yes, I hope so,” Yevtushenkov said.

He also said that Sistema was making settlement proposals to Rosneft.

Rosneft, the current owner of a controlling stake in oil company Bashneft, filed the suit against Sistema and its unit Sistema-Invest in May, seeking to recover a 170.6 billion ruble loss stemming from an alleged asset stripping at Bashneft by Sistema.

In August, the court satisfied a 136.3 billion ruble part of the suit. Sistema appealed against the decision, after which the negotiations on a peaceful settlement deal with Rosneft were suspended.

Spokesman for Rosneft Mikhail Leontyev said that Rosneft has not received settlement offers from Sistema, “We have voiced our part of the proposal and given reasons for it. The prelude played by Sistema is far too long, a theatrical method of sorts.”

(57.7832 rubles – U.S. $1)

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