BP is selling 19.75% of Rosneft, and its head Bernard Looney is leaving the board of directors of the largest Russian oil company. This is happening against the backdrop of Western sanctions against Russia due to military operations in Ukraine.
The board of directors of the British BP announced that the company is selling 19.75% of Rosneft, announced on Sunday evening, February 27, the press service of BP.
BP CEO Bernard Looney and ex-head of the company Robert Dudley are immediately resigning from the board of directors of Rosneft.
The resignation of two representatives of the British company will require it to change the accounting treatment for its stake in Rosneft, the report said. As a consequence, the company is expected to report significant non-cash expenses in its Q1 2022 results, which will be released in May. The company estimates that the decision to sell its stake in Rosneft will incur costs of up to $25 billion in total.
“I am convinced that the decision we made at the Board of Directors to sell our stake in Rosneft is not only the right one, but also in the long-term interests of BP.” Looney noted. Potential buyers are not listed in the BP announcement. In addition to BP, the largest shareholders of the Russian company are Rosneftegaz (40.4%), Qatari QH Oil Investments (18.46%), two subsidiaries of Rosneft own 10.36%.
