New offshore licenses for Gazprom
Russian energy major Gazprom might be granted a number of new offshore licenses in the eastern part of the Russian Arctic.
The Ministry of Natural Resources has requested the Agency of Sub-Soil Resouces (Rosnedra) to speed up the process of granting Gazprom a number of new offshore licenses in the Russian far east, Vzglyad reports with reference to RIA Novosti.
Also Rosneft has previously expressed strong interest in the shelf outside Kamchatka, but now appears to have lost that area to Gazprom.
Earlier this year, the Russian government decided that only companies with a minimum of five year offshore experience and 50 percent or more state ownership should be allowed to engage in offshore projects.