Gazprom, Russia’s state-owned energy giant, has announced plans to sell several of its holiday resorts following its first annual loss in nearly 50 years, according to reports from Reuters. The company has listed 14 hotels and resorts for sale, including the Tsaghkadzor Marriott Hotel in Armenia’s Valley of Flowers. In May, the company had also put other properties on the market, such as the Imperial Park Hotel & Spa located in the Moscow region, after its decision to relocate its headquarters from Moscow to St. Petersburg in 2021. The Russian newspaper Vedomosti estimated the value of this hotel at up to 69.5 million dollars.

Despite these sales, it is unlikely that the proceeds will be sufficient to cover Gazprom’s significant financial losses. The company reported a net loss of almost 7 billion dollars for 2023, mainly due to the decline in its sales in key European markets, which have been severely affected by Russia's military actions in Ukraine.

As the expiration of its gas transit agreement with Ukraine looms at the end of the year, Gazprom is preparing for the possibility of further losses in its share of the European market. Kyiv has made clear that it has no intention of negotiating an extension of the treaty, increasing the uncertainty around the future of Russian gas exports to the EU.