Russian ministry coordinates plan for private firms shelf access

MOSCOW, Apr 21 (PRIME) -- Russia’s Natural Resources and Environment Ministry has coordinated suggestions of expanding access of private companies to the shelf with all interested ministries and departments and will most likely present them to the government in May, Minister Sergei Donskoi told reporters Tuesday.

“All the ministries have in general supported the idea. We are now to bring this to the consideration of presidential administration. I see no other major obstacles at the government level,” Donskoi said.

The ministry has also sent a proposal to suspend granting state-controlled companies access to new shelf sites to the government on Monday, he added. About 80% of all licenses for shelf works have already been granted to gas giant Gazprom and oil major Rosneft.

Under the current legislation, only state-controlled companies that have a 5-year experience of shelf development can operate on the shelf. At present, only Gazprom and Rosneft meet the requirement.

Earlier in April, Energy Minister Alexander Novak told business daily Vedomosti that the government is very likely to permit private oil and gas companies to work on the shelf soon. Lukoil is the main lobbyist for this, Novak said.

Lukoil may work on the Russian shelf of the Caspian and the Baltic seas, but the company has repeatedly said that it wants to get access to other shelf sites, including in the Arctic.

End