THE Russian Security Council has called for its ministries overseeing land use in the Russian Arctic to draw up a plan for development of the region’s petroleum resources.
Nikolai Patrushev, secretary of the security council, said that the plans had to be ready by the end of this year, for immediate implementation in early 2012.
Patrushev warned that, while Russia is the world’s leading country when it comes to natural gas reserves (24% of the global total), and number seven in oil reserves (6%), resources are depleting.
Russia’s Ministry of Natural Resources has estimated that 75% of the country’s oil & gas reserves have been developed, and many are 50% depleted with production at some 30%.
It maintains that around 710billion barrels oil equivalent of recoverable oil & gas resources are located within the continental shelf, with 51 reservoirs discovered to date. Six, including Shtokmanovskoye, are considered giants.