LUKOIL Increased Oil Extraction by 2.2% in 2002

LUKOIL extracted 78.2 million tonnes of oil in 2002 (not counting the share of dependent enterprises) which was an increase of 2.2% year-on-year. As the company press office announced, these figures were made public in Moscow on Monday, January 13, at the first meeting of the board of directors in 2003. LUKOIL also produced 5.1 billion cubic metres of gas in 2002 (not counting the share of dependent enterprises). There was also a significant increase in the company's source of raw materials in 2002. 10 new oil and gas fields were discovered and 16 sources of hydrocarbon accumulation were discovered. At the LUKOIL gas-processing plants 2.4 million tonnes of light hydrocarbon was processed, an increase of 2.2% year-on-year.

LUKOIL also refined 41.5 tonnes of oil, a year-on-year increase of 9.2%. This figure includes 33.8 million tonnes refined in Russia and 7.7 million tonnes refined abroad. 34.3 million tonnes of oil were exported, an increase of 4.9% year-on-year. The net volume of sales in 2002 was 46.8 million tonnes, an increase of 5% year-on-year, of which 20.6 million tonnes were sold on the Russian market, 14.2 million tonnes went for export and 12 million was sold by sales organisations abroad.

According to provisional data USD 2.4 billion was invested in LUKOIL projects in 2002, 5.7% more than was planned. More than 73% of this money was spent on oil and gas extraction. 588 new wells were built and put into operation in 2002. 178 filling stations were opened in Russia, 74 were purchased and built abroad and 536 were rebuilt.

According to the company's press office, the board of directors came to the conclusion that the oil company's capitalization was not meeting its potential. They set the company's main goals for 2003 in view of this. One of these goals is to increase the efficiency of all the company's activities and prevent any delays. It is expected that at least 80 million tonnes of oil and 5.7 billion cubic metres of gas will be extracted in 2003. LUKOIL also intends to find new oil buyers in 2003 and expand its retail sales network. The company's investment programme for 2003 is expected to be worth about USD 2.4 billion. There are also plans to complete the restructuring of the LUKOIL group and strengthen the company's position on the stock market.

LUKOIL was founded in 1993. Its authorized capital stock totals about USD 670 thousand and consists of 850,563,255 ordinary shares. The company's main areas of activity are oil and gas exploration and extraction and the production of oil products.

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