U.S. oilfield services firm Halliburton warns of risk to Russian assets

(Reuters) – U.S. oilfield services firm Halliburton Co on Friday warned it may face Russian government seizure of its $340 million in assets in the country and a future charge to earnings over its withdrawal.

The company last month disclosed it had suspended Russian operations following the conflict in Ukraine and would wind down existing operations. Those contracts will end May 15 to comply with U.S., U.K., Swiss and European Union sanctions, it said on Friday.

The securities filing did not specify the size of the potential impairment charge. Legal challenges and employee severance costs could add to any asset impairment, it said in a securities filing. The company already took a $22 million writedown on its Ukraine assets.

Oilfield rival Baker Hughes this week also said sanctions have made its operations in Russia “significantly more difficult.” It did not write down assets but said further sanctions that disrupt its Russian contracts “could have a material adverse effect” on future results.

(Reporting by Gary McWilliams and Liz Hampton)