Business
‘We Could Lose It All’: BP’s Bet on Russia Was Always a Gamble
The company will eat a $25 billion loss with its forced exit from the country—but higher oil prices will ease the pain.
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On Feb. 8, after delivering the highest quarterly profit in a decade, BP Plc Chief Executive Officer Bernard Looney offered a strong defense of the company’s deep ties with Russia’s largest oil producer. Russian tanks had not yet crossed into Ukraine, but with 130,000 troops at the country’s borders, tensions were quickly rising, and BP’s 20% stake in Kremlin-backed Rosneft PJSC meant the London-based oil giant had a lot at stake.
Wearing a V-neck sweater, plain white shirt, and no tie, Looney in a television interview offered a simple rationale for continuing operations in Russia: “Our job is to focus on the business of business. We avoid the politics.”