Baltic States – CIS, Energy, Lithuania, Oil, Transport

"I am not the one in charge of this process and I cannot give any news at the moment. I know that the process is underway. When something is done, there will be an announcement from the owners. Perhaps this should take place this month," Ivan Paleichik told BNS.

The businessman denied that the buyer was he or companies controlled by his family.

Paleichik and his wife own the Vaizga Group, the owner of gas stations operating under the brands of Luktarna, Baltic Petroleum and Lukoil. Also, Andrei Paleichik, his son, is the CEO of Spectator NT, a company that operates Baltic Petroleum gas stations.

"No, I am not the buyer. My son is not the buyer either," Lukoil Baltija's CEO said.

Paleichik said that he could not disclose the name of the buyer. "When it is sold, all of you will be informed. It is not my asset and I am not selling it. I cannot comment," he said.

A share issue by Lukoil Baltija will be registered with the Lithuanian Central Securities Depository on Friday. Some market participants say that it is a signal that a deal related to the company is drawing closer.

Vagit Alekperov, president of Russia's Lukoil, said in an interview on the Russian television Rossiya 24 that the group was selling its retail chain in Lithuania and Latvia due to "anti-Russia sentiment" in these countries.

Lukoil last June exited Estonia's fuel retail market with the sale of its chain to Estonia's fuel retailer Olerex. The Russian company in 2014 sold its retail fuel chains in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Ukraine.