RUSIA Petroleum and YUKOS continue talks on oil and gas exports

RUSIA Petroleum, the owner of a license to explore the Kovykta gas condensate field in the Irkutsk region of Russia, is currently holding talks with YUKOS on integrating RUSIA Petroleum's gas pipeline with the oil pipeline of YUKOS from the Russian city of Angarsk to Daqing, China. A RUSIA Petroleum representative said in an interview with RBC that the integration would allow for a 10-percent decrease in expenses on organizing exports within both projects.

YUKOS intends to export 30m tons of oil from its East Siberian oil wells annually. This initiative going back to the year 2000 was followed by another one launched by the Russian oil transportation company Transneft. Under Transneft's project, the oil pipeline should connect Angarsk with the Russian port of Nakhodka in the Primorsky region. However, the simultaneous implementation of both YUKOS's and Transneft's projects is impossible due to a lack of oil to fill both pipelines.

The final decision on the oil pipeline from Russia to China will be made by a special commission of the Russian government in fall 2003.

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