BP to sell out of PetroChina

British oil giant BP PLC said it intends to sell its 2% stake in PetroChina via a bookbuilt placing of stock.

BP is the world's number three integrated oil company, behind Royal Dutch/Shell and Exxon Mobil.

PetroChina is a subsidiary of state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), and produces two-thirds of China's oil and gas.

The company acquired the shares - about $3.5bn (€2.72bn) in total - when PetroChina listed 10% of its equity in 2000, paying a reported $578m (€449bn) for its holding in the group.

Gary Dirks, president of BP China said: "Our equity investment in PetroChina has been very successful and we believe now is an appropriate time to divest the shares."

He said BP remains committed to its business with PetroChina, which includes a service station joint venture there, and in China as a whole, where the company expect to invest a further $3bn (€ bn) during the next five years.

The placing is being carried out by Goldman Sachs.