Russian oil major Rosneft and BP are close to signing a $700 million deal for BP to acquire a 20 percent stake in the Taas-Yuriakh Siberian oilfield, reports the FT. The deal could be announced this week at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.
The introduction of EU sanctions against Russia hasn’t scared off
the largest European companies, working in the fuel and energy
sector, according to Financial Times.
Besides BP, Italy’s Eni and Norway’s Statoil have already
received governmental approval to continue working on joint
projects with Rosneft. Shell continues to work with Gazprom Neft
over the Salym project in the Siberian Khanty-Mansiysk area and
is seeking Dutch government approval for other joint ventures.
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MORE: Shell’s ex-CEO says sanctions on Russia don’t work
The news comes as the G7 claimed they are ready to extend sanctions
last week. The
announcement was also made just days prior to the St. Petersburg International Economic
Forum, dubbed the
‘Russian Davos’.
The heads of BP, Royal
Dutch Shell and Total will visit the event which starts on
Thursday. America’s Boston Consulting and Ernst Young are
also expected to attend, which could be a sign Washington and
Brussels want dialogue with Moscow.
As EU sanctions are not so diehard as American, European
companies with pre-existing contracts have a possibility to even
expand their activities in Russia and don’t want to miss the
opportunity, says James Henderson, senior fellow at the Oxford
Institute for Energy Studies.
“European companies are finding ways and are certainly freer
to do business than their US counterparts… US companies are going
to be hugely disadvantaged as we go forward because EU sanctions
are not retroactive and US ones are,” Henderson told the FT.
READ MORE: Shale revolution a la Russe: Shell,
Gazprom Neft start fracking in Siberia
“We stay out of the politics… We have a lot of experience in
Russia … our commitment is to remain,” BP CEO Bob Dudley
told CNBC this month.
Statoil is planning to drill two wells with Rosneft at the
onshore Siberian North Komsomolskoye field this summer, and two
wells in the Okhotsk Sea on the edge of the Pacific in summer
2016.
Eni has not disclosed any plans, but the FT, referring to sources
familiar with the situation, assume the Italians may continue
work on a Black Sea license with Rosneft.