The boards of British oil major BP and Norway’s Equinor announced they would pull out of Russian oil investments following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine
BP announced on 27 February it is exiting its 19.75% interest – valued at US$14Bn – in Russian oil giant Rosneft.
BP has held the stake in Rosneft since 2013. Additionally, BP chief executive Bernard Looney and former BP group chief executive Bob Dudley have both resigned from the board of Rosneft with immediate effect.
“I am convinced that the decisions we have taken as a board are not only the right thing to do, but are also in the long-term interests of BP,” said Mr Looney. “Our immediate priority is caring for our great people in the region and we will do our utmost to support them. We are also looking at how BP can support the wider humanitarian effort.”
Meanwhile, Equinor’s board said it would stop new investments into Russia, and start the process of exiting Equinor’s Russian joint ventures.
Equinor president and chief executive Anders Opedal said, “In the current situation, we regard our position as untenable. We will now stop new investments into our Russian business, and we will start the process of exiting our joint ventures in a manner that is consistent with our values. Our top priority in this difficult situation is the safety and security of our people,” said Mr Opedal.
Equinor has been in Russia for over 30 years and entered a co-operation agreement with Rosneft in 2012.
At the end of 2021, Equinor had US$1.2Bn in non-current assets in Russia.
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