Germany’s OBI sells hardware stores in Russia: reports

German DIY chain OBI has sold its stores in Russia to a local investor, Russian media said Tuesday.

Western firms have come under mounting pressure to sell or close their operations in Russia as sanctions pile up on the country over its military intervention in Ukraine.

“Yesterday (Monday), an agreement was signed on the sale of the stake in the OBI group in Russia to a Russian investor, a lawyer involved in the sale, Dmitry Galantsev, was quoted as saying by TASS news agency.

The name of the buyer and the amount of the transaction were not given.

Management of the OBI stores was conferred to the Audit Group consultancy until the sale is completed, according to the Vedomosti daily, which said the consultancy declined to provide any information about the buyer and amount of the transaction.

The German management of OBI, which is part of Tengelmann Group, declared in March it was permanently closing its shops in Russia, where it has been present for nearly 20 years.

Vedomosti reported then that a serious conflict broke out between the majority German shareholder in the Russian unit and the local managers.

The newspaper reported the shops stayed open a week after their closure was announced, and a Russian executive then said they would reopen, prompting a denial from the group.

Russian authorities have ordered close supervision of foreign-owned firms that suspend their activities in Russia over its military operation in Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, without saying the word nationalisation, said he favoured appointing outside administrators to run companies whose foreign owners pull out in order to transfer the operations someone who wants to run them.