Yukos to appeal $3bn tax claim
From Jill Dougherty
CNN Moscow Bureau Chief
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MOSCOW, Russia (CNN) -- Yukos says it will appeal a court ruling that upheld a potentially crushing $3.4 billion claim for back taxes against the oil giant.
A Yukos spokesman told CNN the company was "surprised and disappointed" by Tuesday's verdict and "did nothing wrong and paid all taxes as required by Russian law."
The spokesman said if Yukos lost the appeal, it was prepared to pay the tax claim.
Yukos had been trying to overturn the claim and previously warned that if it had to pay the entire amount immediately, it would be forced to declare bankruptcy.
Assets of Yukos are frozen as collateral for back taxes, and the company said it did not have sufficient cash reserves to cover the multi-billion dollar claim.
Yukos has been trying to clinch a deal with the government to restructure the amount and avoid bankruptcy, but it was unclear Tuesday whether a deal had been struck.
Two weeks ago, the company's management sent the Russian government a written proposal, which would possibly include selling off to government-friendly companies shares currently held by former Yukos head Mikhail Khodorkovsky and other major shareholders.
Khodorkovsky and close associate Platon Lebedev are currently facing a separate trial on charges of fraud and tax evasion totaling more than $1 billion.
Economic analyst James Fenkner told CNN the ruling "crystallizes" the tax bill. "They owe it," he says. "There is no more wiggle room."
Fenkner said, according to Russian law, three scenarios are possible: bailiffs are sent to Yukos immediately to collect the money; Yukos has three months to pay; negotiations are held with tax authorities to cut the bill.
The most likely scenario, he said, is that the company will have to pay the tax within three months.
Anton Drel, a Yukos lawyer contacted by CNN, said it was "too early to discuss the next events" but he saw two possible options: a "peace agreement" or perhaps a move which would preclude bankruptcy but would force Yukos to sell off some of its properties.
Last Thursday, the company brought in a new management team in an effort to push through a deal with the government. (Full story)
Viktor Gerashchenko, former Russian central bank chief, was named Yukos chairman and Steven Theede, an American oil man, was named CEO.
Most analysts believe Yukos will not ultimately be forced into bankruptcy, citing a statement by Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this month that the government was "not interested in the bankruptcy of such a company as Yukos."
Analysts say the collapse of Yukos would undermine faith in the Russian economy, throw stock markets into turmoil and call into question Putin's commitment to private property and economic reform.
Nevertheless observers believe the tax claim against Yukos and the Khodorkovsky trial are part of a Kremlin-inspired vendetta aimed at stripping the 41-year-old tycoon of his economic and political clout.
