10 June 2008
Russian oil and gas companies Gazprom and Lukoil discovered a major oil and gas condensate deposit in the Caspian Sea. The deposit will be developed along with Kazakhstan.
On May 29, 2008, TsentrKaspneftegas LLC, a joint venture between Lukoil and Gazprom, announced its discovery of a major oil and gas condensate deposit in the Russian side of the Caspian Sea. The deposit in the Tsentralnaya site, close to the Kazakh border, will be jointly developed by Russia and Kazakhstan according to a Caspian Sea bottom demarcation agreement signed by the two countries in 2002.
Kazakhstan's KazMunaiGaz will join Lukoil and Gazrpom as a 50% partner to develop what is speculated to be up to a 3.8 billion barrel oil and 90 billion gas deposit. Lukoil and Gazprom plan to complete the exploration by the end of the year and estimate that it may cost up to $12 billion to develop the field, according to Bloomberg.
Sources
Lukoil, Gazprom Find Oil at Tsentralnaya in Caspian, by Bloomberg, May 29, 2008 (Bloomberg website)
Lukoil and Gazprom Discover Large Field in Russia’s Sector of the Caspian, Lukoil May 29, 2008 (Lukoil website)