Gov't official comments on oil reserves

According to the Ministry of Natural Resources, the forecasted growth in Russian oil reserves will be 250m tons and 450bn cubic meters in gas reserves in 2002, Deputy Natural Resources Minister Pyotr Sadovnik told journalists today. He pointed out that the forecasted advance would not provide the planned production volume for 2002. According to him, due to the decrease in the exploration volume that started in 1992 the growth in oil reserves does not compensate oil production. In the period from 1992 to 2000 the average annual growth in oil reserves was 245m tons compared to 1.105bn tons in the period from 1985 to 1991.

The deputy minister pointed out that the current classification of fields and forecasted oil and gas reserves is being revised currently. At present there are 2,407 fields, including 1,958 oil fields, 193 gas and oil fields, 32 oil and gas fields and 224 oil and gas condensate fields. Some 1,253 fields out of their total number are being used and they contain 53.3 percent of Russian oil reserves.