Romanian prosecutors from the Ploiesti Court of Appeal Prosecutor’s Office conducted several searches at the Petrotel refinery in Ploiesti, which is owned by Russian group Lukoil.

The searches are part of a tax evasion and money laundering case in which the damage to the state is about EUR 200 million, according Mediafax newswire, quoting sources from the market. Contacted by Romania-Insider.com, the prosecutor's office failed to confirm any numbers about the prejudice, and give out extra information about the case.

Prosecutors conducted 23 searches on Thursday, October 2, at the headquarters of the firms Petrotel Lukoil, Lukoil Energy & Gas Romania, Lukoil Lubricants East Europe, and other firms controlled by Russia group Lukoil.

The damages in this case, which are estimated at about EUR 200 million, come from tax evasion - half -  and from money laundering operations - the rest.

Local prosecutors from Ploiesti are in charge of this case, which might prove to be one of the largest cases of tax evasion in Romania in recent years.

Lukoil Petrotel, the company that runs one of the main refineries in Romania, is one of the largest 10 local companies by turnover. Last year, it recorded sales of EUR 1.25 billion and losses of EUR 210 million.

Russian group Lukoil also owns the third largest fuel distribution network in Romania, with more than 300 gas stations and sales of EUR 1.13 billion in 2013.

editor@romania-insider.com