Ministry drafts new federal project to study Russia's continental shelf

MOSCOW. June 21 (Interfax) - Russia's Natural Resources Ministry, together with the Federal Mineral Resources Agency (Rosnedra), has drawn up a federal project called the "Continental Shelf of the Russian Federation," the head of the FSBI VNIIOkeangeologia marine geology research institute, Boris Shumsky said at a roundtable on this subject in the Federation Council.

"The Natural Resources Ministry of Russia, together with Rosnedra and with the participation of our institute, developed a federal project last year that provides for measures aimed foremost at geological exploration work on the continental shelf, work on continuing substantiation for the expansion of the boundaries of the continental shelf. Last year we defended a report fairly successfully and received rights to more than 1.6 million square kilometers in the Arctic Ocean. But work in the European basin and in the Chukchi Sea has not been completed yet," Shumsky said.

The Natural Resources Ministry confirmed this information to Interfax and said that the draft of this federal project is now going through the review and approval process at federal agencies.

The allocation of separate targeted financing for the project will make it possible to secure the geopolitical interests and stable presence of Russia in the Arctic and maintain the country's leading position as a marine research power," the ministry added.

Participants in the roundtable noted the huge importance of this project for companies that own ice-class seismic survey vessels, Rosgeo and Marine Arctic Geological Expedition (MAGE), since its implementation will keep their fleet busy.

"One request is to accelerate the progress of this program, because we compiled it for five to seven years, the horizon of our survival," MAGE chief executive Alexei Kazanin said.