Philip Morris International plans to keep its business in Russia after talks to sell its assets in the country went up in smoke.
The Marlboro cigarettes maker said it had been in discussions with at least three potential buyers, but the deals fell through due to strict Kremlin terms that would result in heavy losses for the company.
Following the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the Russian government implemented several policies that allowed it to dictate the value of a foreign company's Russian assets.
- According to Philip Morris International filings, the company's assets in Russia are worth $2.5B.
- CEO Jacek Olczak said he had a duty to shareholders to recover value and has been unable to find a buyer to execute the transaction.
- Olczak said he would rather keep the company's current operation in place.
- According to research by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), less than 9% of EU and G7 companies had left Russia by the end of 2022.
