A 35.9% stake in Sweden’s PA Resources, whose key upstream assets are in Tunisia and West Africa, is one of the few upstream forays to date by Geneva-registered oil trading giant Gunvor.

Gunvor’s annual revenue soared to over $90bn for 2012 and 2013 on the back of rapid growth to dominate trade in Russia’s 3mn b/d of seaborne crude exports. Hand in hand with this growth have come persistent rumors that this rise is linked to close ties with the Kremlin, and with Russian President Vladimir Putin in particular. (CONTINUED - 292 WORDS)