Russ Oil-Gas

On a Side The Shtokman field
The Shtokman field, one of the world's largest natural gas fields, lies in the Russian portion of the Barents Sea, 600 km north of Kola Peninsula. Its reserves are estimated at 3.2 trillion cub.m. The sea depth in the area averages about 350 m. Natural gas reserves were discovered in 1988, but the field was not developed owing to extreme arctic conditions and the depth of the sea. Two Russian companies hold licenses to develop Shtokman: Sevmorneftegaz (a subsidiary of Rosneft) and Gazprom. In September 2005, Gazprom selected five companies - Statoil and Norsk Hydro from Norway, Total from France and Chevron Corporation and ConocoPhillips from the US - as finalists in a search for partners to develop the field. The development costs are estimated at USD15 billion to USD20 billion. RBC, 24.07.2006, Moscow 18:26:51 – Sevmorneftegaz, Gazprom's subsidiary, has started drilling exploration well No. 7 of the Shtokman gas field in the Barents Sea, the holding's press service reports. All drilling is carried out under the company's license obligations. The field's reserves are expected to increase. Gazflot, Gazprom's subsidiary, is the project's general contractor. The well is being drilled with the semi-submersible drilling rig Deepsea Delta leased by the Norwegian company Hydro. The sea depth in the drilling spot is 340 meters.