Oil company BP plans to offload its 19.75% shareholding in Rosneft, a state-owned Russian oil firm.
BP released a statementon Sunday, saying it has held a nearly 20% shareholding since 2013. Both of the company’s nominated directors, including CEO Bernard Looney, will immediately resign from the Rosneft board and BP “will no longer report reserves, production or profit for Rosneft.”
Company chair Helge Lund said in the statement, “bp has operated in Russia for over 30 years, working with brilliant Russian colleagues. However, this military action represents a fundamental change. It has led the bp board to conclude, after a thorough process, that our involvement with Rosneft, a state-owned enterprise, simply cannot continue.”
Lund went on to say the Rosneft holding “is no longer aligned with bp’s business and strategy.”
