Gazprom Neft, the oil arm of Russia’s gas giant Gazprom, has said it is expanding its cooperation with Spain’s Repsol in a joint venture to undertake geological exploration in the Karabashsky zone in Russia’s Yamalo-Nenets district, Finanz.ru reports.
The partners have jointly acquired a 100-percent interest in ASB Geo LLC, which holds the exploration license for the Karabashsky 10 block in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug. According to the deal, the joint company is to be managed on a partnership basis.
The Karabashsky 10 license block, located in the Kondinsky district in the south—east of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, is in the early stages of geological prospecting. It is adjacent to license blocks in the Karabashsky zone, the rights to various of which are already held by another Gazprom Neft—Repsol joint venture, Evrotek-Yugra. The partners plan to begin geological prospecting works, using 2D seismic, in 2019. Evrotek-Yugra will operate this project wits its professional team and all the necessary skills and competencies in exploration, the two companies said.
“The acquisition of a new license block in the Karabashsky zone marks a further step forward in developing our partnership with Repsol under the previously concluded Memorandum of Cooperation determining the basis for cooperation in investigating license blocks adjacent to Evrotek-Yugra assets. Combining Gazprom Neft’s and Repsol’s competencies, experience and resources is intended to improve efficiency in activities directed at revealing the resource potential of this under-investigated part of the southeast of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug,” said Vadim Yakovlev, first deputy CEO of Gazprom Neft.
Gazprom Neft acquired a 15.02-percent interest in Evrotek-Yugra, owned by Spain’s Repsol, in July 2017. The Russian company said its investment in this joint venture will reach around by the end of 2019.
