8 Oct 2009 13:23

Sakhalin oil production up 23% in 9 mths; gas up 140%

YUZHNO-SAKHALINSK. Oct 8 (Interfax) - Oil production on Sakhalin rose 23.3% in the first nine months of 2009 year-on-year to 11.4 million tonnes, the chairman of the regional economic committee, Sergei Karpenko, said at a regional administration meeting.

Gas production in the nine months rose 140% year-on-year to over 13 billion cubic meters (bcm).

The Sakhalin-1 and Sakhalin-2 projects provided the lion's share of production, Karpenko said. Sakhalin-2 exported over 3 million tonnes of LNG in the period, to India and Japan.

Oil production is slated to reach 15.3 million tonnes this year, 18.8% more than in 2008 and exceeding the previous forecast for 2009 of 14.6 million tonnes.

Gas production this year should total 17.4 bcm, 130% more than in 2008 and above the 16.3 bcm the committee forecast previously.

Karpenko said the forecasts had been revised due to production at Sakhalin-2

Karpenko also reported the hydrocarbon production forecasts for 2010-2012. Oil production is expected to total 15.9 million tonnes in 2010 (4.2% more than in 2009), 16.3 million tonnes in 2011 and 16.7 million tonnes in 2012.

Gas production will rise 26.2% to 22 bcm in 2010, to 25.7 bcm in 2011 and to 27.5 bcm in 2012.

Meanwhile, oil production at Sakhalin-1 will decline, he said.

"Oil production at Sakhalin-1 will decline by roughly 15%-16% due to depletion of the fields," Deputy Governor Natalya Novikova said at the meeting, citing the revenue forecasts for the regional budget in 2010.