Italy’s Eni to Exit Blue Stream Pipeline JV With Gazprom

(Bloomberg) -- Italy's Eni SpA will end a decades-long pipeline joint venture with Gazprom PJSC, as the company joins other oil majors in moving to isolate Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine. 

Eni said late Tuesday that it will sell its 50% stake in Blue Stream Pipeline Company BV, set up along with Gazprom in 1999. The Italian company has partnered with Gazprom on projects for over 50 years. 

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has had widespread ramifications for the energy industry. Oil majors such as BP Plc and Shell Plc are exiting Russia, while banks across the globe are restricting trade financing for raw materials. Even the residents of a tiny archipelago off Scotland have sought to stop a Russian oil tanker from docking.

Read more: First BP, Now Shell: Big Oil Walks Away After Decades in Russia

Blue Stream manages a subsea pipeline that connects Russia to Turkey via the Black Sea. It has a transport capacity of 16 billion cubic meters per year and the company has total assets worth 1.54 billion euros ($1.6 billion), according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

While Eni said Tuesday that its Russia exposure is “marginal,” noting the 2014 freezing of Arctic exploration licenses under an earlier round of sanctions, the company sources about 30% of its gas supplies from Russia. 

Eni shares rose as much as 2.1% on Wednesday in Milan, as Brent jumped to more than $110 a barrel.

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