I'm LongbridgeAI, I can summarize articles.BP is in advanced talks to sell its UK solar business, Lightsource, to Kuwait-backed Qualitas Energy and Wren House. This move marks BP's retreat from net zero commitments under CEO Meg O'Neill, who is refocusing on core oil and gas operations to boost shareholder returns and reduce debt. The divestment follows significant write-downs in BP's low-carbon division and aligns with the company's strategy to streamline its portfolio and cut net debt to $18bn by year-end.
BP is in talks to sell its British solar business to a Kuwait-backed investor as it retreats from net zero.
The energy giant is reportedly in advanced discussions to offload its Lightsource solar division, which has developed more than 300 solar farms in the UK, to Qualitas Energy and Wren House, the infrastructure unit of Kuwait’s sovereign wealth fund.
Lightsource was Europe’s largest solar developer when BP first invested in the company in 2017. It has a four-gigawatt portfolio of solar, wind and battery assets across 15 countries.
But BP has written down $6bn (£4.5bn) in the value of its low-carbon and energy-transition division in the past year, including $4bn in value attributed to Lightsource.
It comes as the energy giant unwinds a six-year-old net zero push and refocuses on its core oil and gas business.
Under Bernard Looney, the boss of BP from 2020 to 2023, the company cut its oil output by 40pc and pumped billions into renewable energy projects. Two years later, amid a growing chorus of shareholder complaints about the company’s lacklustre profits and share price, Murray Auchincloss, Mr Looney’s successor, changed course.
He told investors in January 2025 that the company had gone “too far, too fast” on the energy transition, and would “reset” towards boosting shareholder returns.
He said BP would cut spending on renewables by $5bn to no more than $2bn a year and increase its investment in oil and gas by about $2bn to a total of $10bn.
Meg O’Neill, the chief executive, who took over from Mr Auchincloss in April this year after more boardroom turmoil, has promised to streamline BP’s portfolio and make the business “predictable” again.
BP has recently offloaded a refinery in Germany, a portfolio of petrol forecourts and charging stations in Austria, an interest in a Canadian offshore oil project, and stakes in 10 technology start-ups and several US pipelines.
The planned sale of Lightsource, which was first reported by the Financial Times, is also thought to be driven by BP’s plans to pay down debt. The company took on $2.8bn of debt when it bought out the half of the solar firm it did not already own in 2024.
BP has said any divestment proceeds will go towards reducing debt. Ms O’Neill is aiming to cut the company’s total net debt pile from about $23bn to $18bn by the end of this year.
If confirmed, the deal would bolster the UK presence of Wren House, which was established in 2013 as the infrastructure arm of the Kuwait Investment Authority.
Its existing investments include London City Airport and Associated British Ports, the largest port operator in the UK.
Wren House has teamed up with Qualitas, a Madrid-based energy giant that operates 11 gigawatts of solar, wind, battery and hydroelectric power assets in half a dozen countries, including the US.
Qualitas and Wren House have been contacted for comment. BP declined to comment.