LONDON, Feb 27 (Reuters) - BP is abandoning its stake in Russian oil giant Rosneft in an abrupt and costly end to three decades of operating 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 around half of BP's oil and gas reserves and a third of its production and divesting the 19.75% stake will result in charges of up to $25 billion, the British company said, without saying how it plans to extricate itself.
"I have been deeply shocked and saddened by the situation unfolding in Ukraine and my heart goes out to everyone affected. It has caused us to fundamentally rethink bp's position with Rosneft," BP Chief Executive Bernard Looney said.
The rapid retreat represents a dramatic exit for BP, the biggest 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 underscores growing pressure from Western governments on their companies to curtail operations in Russia as they widen a net of economic sanctions against Moscow.
British Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng, who on Friday had expressed "concern" over BP's Rosneft, welcomed the decision.
"Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine must be a wake up call for British businesses 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 30 years of successful cooperation had been ruined.
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