Surgutneftegas to boost C1 reserves by 60 mln tonnes, C3 by 35 mln tonnes in 2012
MOSCOW. Sept 17 (Interfax) - Surgutneftegas plans to increase C1 category recoverable oil reserves by more than 60 million tonnes and C3 recoverable oil resources by more than 35 million tonnes in 2012, the Russian oil company's corporate newspaper Neft Priobya reported, citing Surgutneftegas deputy chief geologist Ivan Kos.
The company plans to achieve this by expanding exploration drilling by about 4% to 224,700 meters; 67% of this work will be done in Western Siberia. The company plans to do 2D seismic exploration work of more than 3,100 km, and increase 3D work by 60% to 1,900 square km.
Surgutneftegas increased C1 recoverable oil reserves by more than 45 million tonnes in the first eight months of 2012, discovering five oil fields and three new deposits in Western Siberia. In this period the company did 163,735 meters of exploration drilling (110,314 meters in Western Siberia, 41,242 meters in Eastern Siberia and 12,179 meters in the Nenets Autonomous District), which was 12,215 meters more than planned.
All of the discoveries were made within exploration license properties, and the fields are considered small in terms of reserves. The company has obtained positive results that indicate the discovery of another three fields: on in the Novosibirsk Region and two in the Khanty Mansiysk Autonomous District. Additional exploration work is needed in order to obtain more reliable information on the geological structure of these prospective properties. In addition, materials are being processed for the discovery of two new oil deposits at the company's Konitlorskoye field.
Surgutneftegas' long-term program calls for maintaining the pace of exploration work, keeping exploration drilling at the current level of 200,000 to 225,000 meters per year, while expanding the boundaries of this work both in Western and Eastern Siberia, and in Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Timan-Pechora basin.