EU accepts that Uniper cannot sell Russian unit, CEO says (updated)

Fortum Oyj

28/01/2026 08:32

Adds CEO quotes, details on dividends, Swedish operations from paragraph 5

By Christoph Steitz

BERLIN, Jan 28 (Reuters) - The European Union has accepted that Uniper UN0k.DE cannot meet a key condition of its 13.5 billion euro ($16.2 billion) bailout because the German utility is unable to sell its Russian subsidiary, which is now under Moscow's control, Uniper's CEO said.

Uniper had to be rescued by Berlin in 2022 in the wake of Europe's energy crisis and Brussels set a number of conditions to approve the bailout, including the disposal of ten assets by end-2026, nine of which have been divested or are being sold.

Russia's Unipro UPRO.MM, in which Uniper holds an 83.7% stake currently valued at 106.5 billion roubles ($1.4 billion), remains on the list but has been put under administration by Moscow, effectively stripping its owner of any control.

"Brussels understands that we don't have control over it and we can't sell it," the group's CEO Michael Lewis told Reuters at the Handelsblatt energy summit.

The EU Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Lewis said any proceeds from a potential Unipro sale down the line would be an upside since it was written off, adding he expected the division to remain under Russian control for now.

The German government is currently trying to divest its 99.12% stake in Uniper via a listing or sale, with Lewis saying the company was ready for both.

Lewis said there were no plans to divest its Swedish nuclear and hydroelectric business which Finland's Fortum FORTUM.HE has a right of first offer if Uniper divests it by end-2026.

"It delivers solid cash flow, solid earnings, and that's exactly what we need."

($1 = 0.8338 euros)

($1 = 76.2455 roubles)

 (Reporting by Christoph Steitz;Editing by Ludwig Burger and Elaine Hardcastle)

 ((christoph.steitz@thomsonreuters.com; +49 30 220 133 647))