Russia’s largest privately owned oil company  Lukoil is gearing up  to sell off its oil refineries in Italy, Romania, Bulgaria and the Netherland, its president Vagit Alekperov announced at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum  (SPIEF) in St Petersburg today, blaming a deterioration with its western neighbours for the decision. “Our sector is politicized,” he said. “In general, this is pushing us to transfer our European assets, especially  our downstream ones  into a separate company,  or even to sell them. These are not the assets which are strategic for us today,” he added.