Equinor transfers stakes in four JVs to Rosneft, signs agreement to exit Kharyaga PSA

MOSCOW. May 25 (Interfax) - Equinor has now transferred its participating interests in four Russian joint ventures to Rosneft and is released from all future commitments and obligations, the Norwegian company said in a press release.

An agreement to exit the Kharyaga PSA project has also been signed.

The exit from all joint ventures has been completed in accordance with Norwegian and EU sanctions legislation related to Russia.

Equinor decided to start the process of exiting the company's joint ventures in Russia on February 27, 2022. Since then, Equinor has halted all new investments into Russia, stopped trading oil and gas products from Russia and announced an impairment of $1.08 billion on the balance sheet as of March 31, 2022.

Equinor has been in Russia for over 30 years and entered a cooperation agreement with Rosneft in 2012.

Its exit means the loss of 88 million boe of reserves (1.6%) and 21,600 boepd output (1%). Its share of Kharyaga output, where the company has a 30% stake, was 10,000 boepd in 2021, it share or the Angara Oil JV's output at the Severo-Danilovskoye field was 11,000 boepd and its share of output by the SevKomNefteGaz JV's output at the Severo-Komsomolskoye field was 5,000 boepd.

Equinor and Rosneft also set up a joint venture company to run a three-year pilot program to assess the potential for commercial production from the Domanik limestone formation in the Samara region and a project to assess shale oil at the Khadum suite in the Stavropol territory.