FRANKFURT, March 2 (Reuters) - German oil and gas firm Wintershall Dea said on Wednesday it would stop payments to Russia and write off its 1 billion euro ($1.1 billion) financing in the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which was suspended last week.
The group, one of the five co-funders of Nord Stream 2, said Russia's invasion of Ukraine had "shaken the foundations of the company's work in Russia to the core".
French utility Engie , another backer of the pipeline, said it had a credit risk exposure of up to 987 million euros to Nord Stream. read more
The remaining financiers of the Gazprom-led pipeline include German utility Uniper (UN01.DE), Austria's OMV (OMVV.VI) as well as Shell (SHEL.L), which has already announced a writedown of its contribution.
Germany last week halted certification of the pipeline, which bypasses Ukraine to transport gas to Europe from Russia. read more
Wintershall Dea, which is co-owned by BASF (BASFn.DE) and Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman's investor group LetterOne, said it would still remain involved in its existing Russian joint ventures.
These include the Yuzhno-Russkoye gas field, in which it owns 35%, with Gazprom and OMV owning 40% and 25%, respectively.
LetterOne's Fridman is among 26 prominent people under sanctions by the European Union for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with measures including travel restrictions, an asset freeze and a ban on making funds available to the listed individuals. read more
Wintershall Dea will also keep its holdings in the Achimov natural gas production projects in Siberia, which include Achimgaz - a 50-50 joint venture with Gazprom - and Achim Development, in which Wintershall Dea holds 25%.
Wintershall Dea said it will also remain active in network operator Gascade, a joint venture with Gazprom that operates a 3,200-kilometre (1,988-mile) gas pipeline network in Germany.
Uniper, too, said it would continue to run its Russian business, which includes a 83.7% stake in local utility Unipro (UPRO.MM), in a responsible way, adding this was key to meeting existing gas and power supply deals in Europe.