Once Russia's largest crude producer, Yukos was declared bankrupt August 1 after three years of litigation with authorities over tax arrears.
"They [the companies] have sent letters to the bankruptcy receiver expressing interest in acquiring some of Yukos' assets," said Nikolai Lashkevich.
He did not say which particular assets the companies are seeking to buy, and said that the letters, which arrived at different times, could not be considered bids.
"They [the letters] were only sent to express interest, while bidding suggest a specific timeframe for a purchase," the official said.
The Yukos group, whose founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky is serving an eight-year prison term for fraud and tax evasion, now faces multi-billion dollar claims from creditors, including state-controlled oil company Rosneft, Rosneft-owned former production unit Yuganskneftegaz, the Federal Tax Service, and more than 20 other companies.
A consortium of appraisers estimated Yukos assets at $22 billion.
Lashkevich said last week that the bankruptcy manager's office had received similar letters from a number of large international companies, including U.S. oil major Chevron.
