Brazilian oil company BP leaves Russia with losses of up to US$25 billion after military action in Ukraine.
This is the most significant move ever made by a Western company in response to Russian military action on Ukrainian soil.
Reuters BP is abandoning its stake in Russian oil giant Rosneft in an abrupt and costly end to three decades of operation in the energy-rich country, marking the most significant move yet by a Western company in response to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
Rosneft accounts for about half of BP's oil and gas reserves and a third of its production, and the sale of its 19,75% stake will result in charges of up to US$25 billion, the British company said, without specifying how it plans to dispose of them.
"I was deeply shocked and saddened by the unfolding situation in Ukraine and my heart goes out to all those affected. This has led us to fundamentally rethink BP's position with Rosneft," said BP CEO Bernard Looney.
The rapid retreat represents a dramatic exit for BP, the largest foreign investor in Russia, and puts the spotlight on other Western companies with operations in the country, including France's TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) and Britain's Shell (SHEL.L), amid an escalating crisis between the West and Moscow.
It also highlights the growing pressure from Western governments on their companies to reduce operations in Russia as they expand a network of economic sanctions against Moscow.
British Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng, who on Friday expressed "concern" about BP's Rosneft, welcomed the decision.
"Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine should be a warning to British companies with commercial interests in (President Vladimir) Putin's Russia," Kwarteng said on Twitter.
Rosneft (ROSN.MM) blamed BP's decision on "unprecedented political pressure," Russian news agencies reported, saying that 30 years of successful cooperation had been ruined.
Susannah Streeter, senior investment analyst at British brokerage firm Hargreaves Lansdown, said it will be "highly difficult" for BP to "recover close to what was considered the full value" of Rosneft.
Last week, Looney said that BP was sticking to Russian business and would comply with any Western sanctions against Moscow.
Earlier, Putin put Russia's nuclear deterrent on high alert in response to Western retaliation for his invasion of Ukraine, which included blocking access to the SWIFT international payment system for some Russian banks. See more information.
And Norway's $1,3 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, will sell its Russian assets following the invasion of Ukraine, its prime minister said.
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