To strengthen security of supply and to ensure the continued operations of oil refineries in Schwedt an der Oder, Rosneft MiRo and Bayernoil, Neustadt an der Donau, the German government has placed these three refineries under trusteeship as it seeks to manage and attenuate the impact of the ongoing energy crisis.

Toward this end, the German government has announced a "future package" for eastern German states worth €1 billion ($997.50 million) over several years following the move to trusteeship for Rosneft.

Schwedt itself would receive €825 million from the federal and state governments, according to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. He said the funding would ensure that terminations would be avoided at the plant, which employs some 1,200 people.

Scholz also noted that Polish refiner PKN Orlen was interested in buying a controlling stake in the Schwedt refinery. Warsaw said earlier this year that ending Russian ownership of the refinery was a condition for potentially supplying it with sea-borne oil via a terminal in Gdansk and via Polish pipelines to replace Russian crude.

"At the moment, we're doing a trusteeship, not selling the refinery, said Scholz. Understandably Rosneft is not pleased with the new status of Schwedt:

"Rosneft sees this as a violation of all the fundamental principles of the market economy, the civilized foundations of a modern society built on the principle of the inviolability of private property," a company statement said, stressing that the firm had fulfilled its legal and contractual obligations.

Furthermore, Rosneft said that Berlin's decision meant that it was no longer possible to "guarantee the industrial and ecological safety of the plant."

The German Economy Ministry, for its part, claimed critical suppliers such as insurance companies, IT providers and banks were no longer willing to work with Rosneft, either with the subsidiaries themselves or through the refineries.

The trusteeship is initially due to last six months.