WorldTrade Executive

INVESTMENT
Gazprom and Sibneft
The Gazprom purchase of Sibneft is the largest transaction in the history of post-Soviet Russia. It has been dubbed the buy of the decade and it placed third on the list of cash acquisitions in the energy sector worldwide. It is unlikely the Kremlin would hand over such a sum to the principal Sibneft proprietor Roman Abramovich without prior conditions and without demanding from him new services. These could be a host of social obligations, such as the continued financing of Chukotka and sports teams, as well as investment in non-raw material businesses in Russia and abroad. page 5

Boosting Profitability of the Shelf
Realization of offshore (shelf) projects requires large-scale investment. Corporate and debt financing cannot be employed without guaranteeing investors cost recovery and acceptable internal rates of return. Economic incentives to lure capital into development of Russian offshore fields and to create a new, capital-intensive sector are associated to a considerable extent with tax considerations. Specialists at Sintezneftegaz have calculated the impact of various tax concessions on development of offshore fields.Sakhalin, are of particular interest, and BP (UK) is getting ready to bid for them. page 12

COMPANIES
No Purchaser for Bratskekogaz Yet
In early September the management of Itera announced that it intended to sell its 79 percent interest in OAO Bratskekogaz (BEG). As of early October, no buyer had been found for BEG. The most attractive asset of BEG is a license to produce gas and gas condensate at the Bratskoye gas-condensate field in Irkutsk Region. Itera bought Bratskekogaz in 2001. The company promised to initiate pilot-commercial exploitation at the gas-condensate field first in 2002 and later in 2004. Despite public pledges, commercial production of gas and condensate was not begun. In the run-up to a possible sale, the company has removed all of the wells from operation. page 17

INTERVIEW
Interview with Minister Trutnev – Trustee of Russian Subsoil
In early September the Minister of Natural Resources, Yuri Trutnev, spoke with Russian Petroleum Investor. During his interview he answered questions on the state of natural resources in the Russian Federation. page 23

LNG
China: The Emergence of a Major New LNG Demand Market In Asia?
Much attention has been devoted by LNG exporters and project developers to the prospects for growth in the Chinese LNG import market, but many also recognise that this is a nascent market and has its fair share of emerging market risks. This article considers how and when China might come to be a major new LNG demand market and what obstacles might need to be addressed in order for that to happen. page 31

ELECTRICITY
IPP Projects – Solution for the Electric Power Industry
On October 13, 2005, Baker & McKenzie and Integrated Energy Systems held a seminar titled “Russia: The Next IPP Frontier? Inside-the-Fence Projects in Russia: Viability & Financing.” The program was devoted to investment in the Russian electric energy industry via projects being undertaken by Independent Power Producers (IPP). The conference highlighted the differences in approach between the reforms advocated by the government and by the Unified Energy System of Russia (UES) in contrast to the private entrepreneurial
approach represented by IPP producers. page 38

PROJECTS
New Export Route to Europe
Gazprom has signed an agreement in principle with the German companies BASF AG and E.ON AG, to construct the North European Gas Pipeline (NEGP). The route of the pipeline will pass through the Baltic Sea. This gas pipeline will make it possible to deliver Russian natural gas to Western Europe without crossing the territory of transit states by linking the Russian and German coasts of the Baltic Sea. The first line of the gas conduit, with a capacity to carry 27.5 billion cubic meters, will be commissioned in 2010. page 46

New Technology for Shelf
A key factor restraining the start of development of offshore fields in the Arctic is the need for large-scale investment to tap deposits. Gazprom has developed a fundamentally new type of moveable, ice-resistant platform for exploration and development of offshore fields in the region. This new technology improves the economics of offshore projects and lessens the need to invite foreign partners. Experts believe it will be possible to use mobile platforms in other marine areas, but they doubt this technology can be applied very soon. page 54

STATISTICS
Production Statistics for August Export Statistics for August page 70

Asset Buying Fever
By Vladimir Baidashin and Inna Gaiduk

The frenzy of oil asset trading in the West has reached Russia. Buying and selling of oil assets in Russia is heating up. Traditionally “dead” July through August delivered more than a few surprises in mergers and acquisitions this year. Both Russian and foreign companies, including majors, medium-sized companies and entities entirely unrelated to oil and gas business entered the market for oil and gas sector through mergers and acquisitions.

NOVATEK IPO
By Sergei Glazkov

Shares in NOVATEK, the second-largest gas producer in Russia, became available on the international stock market this summer. During a very successful initial public offering, NOVATEK’s core shareholders sold 19 percent of their shares, while retaining control over the enterprise. Experts believe that better prospects are inevitable for independent gas producers in Russia. The improved outlook for the independent gas business makes the purchase of Russian gas assets and licenses more attractive to investors.

Super-Ambitious Rosneft
By Vladimir Baidashin

State oil company Rosneft took over Yuganskneftegaz, the main production asset of YUKOS, in 2004. By 2007-2008 the company plans to become Russia’s top domestic oil producer. Today Rosneft holds second place among domestic oil companies, after LUKOIL. In 10 years Rosneft expects to increase its share of the Russian oil market from its current 15 percent to 25 percent to 27 percent. This means that by 2015 the company will produce 120 million tons to 128 million tons of oil per year.

Small Company Trumps Gazprom
By Inna Gaiduk

The rights to explore and produce hydrocarbons at blocks of the Kamennomysskoye and Akaitemskoye fields were put on auction in Salekhard, in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District (YNAD) on August 12. Mangazeya, a small NOVATEK subsidiary, and Russian-French joint venture EuroTEK surprisingly bested such Russian heavy hitters as Gazprom, Sibneft, acting through a subsidiary Sibneft-Noyabrskneftegaz, and even Yamalgaz, the incumbent holder of the license for the Kamennomysskoye field. Both of these small company winners have warm relations in YNAD.

Shell Executive Considers Russia “A Very Good Place to Work”
By Vladimir Baidashin

Dale Rollins, Chief Executive Officer of the joint venture Salym Petroleum Development N.V., spoke with Russian Petroleum Investor about the joint venture’s s activities in Russia, its future plans and Rollins’ personal opinions on work in Russia.

Regulation in the Restructured Russian Electrical Power Sector - Some Critical Policy Observations
By Ashley Brown, Esq.

Excerpts, with some updated modifications, from a report prepared by the Infrastructure and Energy Services Department, Europe and Central Asia Region (ECSIE) of The World Bank, June 2004.

Which Direction for Vankor Oil?
By Sergei Glazkov

In the two years since Rosneft gained control of the Vankor project, the company has doubled the reserves of the Vankorskoye oil field. Nonetheless, full implementation of the project and a decision on including a possible foreign partner will take at least another year. Uncertainties over the appropriate route for exporting oil and from increasing competition in the region from TNK-BP are the source of delay. Rosneft’s decision on an export route will also play a large role in determining the value of assets to be auctioned in the Taimyr region of Karsnoyarsk Territory and influences development plans of other oil majors in the region.

The North-Donbas Project
By Inna Gaiduk

Large oil and gas companies and investors usually direct their attention to traditional hydrocarbon producing regions, promising areas in Eastern Siberia and the continental shelf. Nonetheless, Russia has regions with growing demand for energy resources in which commercially viable oil and gas fields lie untapped virtually steps away from the consumer. The Rostov Region furnishes a striking example of this dichotomy as a highly-developed industrial area in southern Russia that faces a gas supply shortage. It also holds unrealized oil and gas potential. In response the private company Yuzhnaya Fuel and Energy Company is proposing the creation of a regional system to produce, transport and supply energy resources to consumers in the Rostov Region using local hydrocarbon fields.

IN THIS ISSUE

Russian Offshore: The Challenge
The year 2005 holds overriding significance for the state strategy to study and exploit the oil and gas potential of the continental shelf of the Russian Federation. The draft strategy has already gone through many rounds of coordination among governmental agencies. The Russian Government gave its approval to the strategy at its May 12 meeting, but left six months for finishing touches to the document. At that meeting the Government designated ministries and agencies directly related to this important issue to establish an interagency commission to finalize the draft strategy and a comprehensive plan of actions for shelf development. Nonetheless a wide-ranging debate on state strategy for the shelf continues.

No Arctic Shelf Development without Foreigners
The continental shelf of Russia is a vast untapped resource, surpassed only by the fields of Eastern Siberia. Development of these extravagantly wealthy reservoirs will require incalculable investment. Arctic projects can be rolled out only by combining efforts of state and private investors, including foreigners. Today there is general agreement that development of the arctic shelf can no longer be deferred. By artfully fusing state interests and capabilities of private business and by granting favorable conditions to tap the shelf, Russia can create an oil and gas production hub of global significance on the arctic shelf.

Russneft - Vertical Ascent
Russneft, is one of the most dynamically developing young oil companies in Russia. It recently commissioned a rail oil loading terminal near the Russian-Belarussian border that will be used to reload oil from a trunk oil pipeline into tank cars for subsequent delivery to Belarus and Baltic and Eastern European countries. The terminal will enable Russneft to raise its oil exports well beyond the quotas set by Transneft. Russneft also plans to acquire an oil refinery and become a vertically integrated company.

Squeeze on TNK-BP
Two projects to develop the largest fields in Eastern Siberia appear to be in jeopardy. Squeezed between pressure from the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) to fulfill license requirements and the lack of market access, the TNK-BP-related operating entities for these giant fields face very difficult choices and risk loss of these valuable assets.

Sibneft Set for Sale
On July 20 the Basmanny District Court in Moscow lifted the attachment and escrow of 14.5 percent of the shares of Sibneft, Russia’s fifth largest oil producer. These shares had been held by the beleaguered oil major YUKOS. After the ruling, the shares were transferred to Millhouse Capital, the manager of the shares of the principal co-owners of Sibneft. Roman Abramovich, considered chief among principals, and his colleagues have thus regained 72 percent of the shares in Sibneft and are free to sell their block. Gazprom is reportedly engaged in talks to buy a controlling stake in Sibneft and is negotiating with a group of Western banks for the almost $12 billion credit it needs to close the transaction. By purchasing the 72 percent interest in Sibneft and buying another three percent of the company’s shares in the market, Gazprom could secure a qualified majority of votes in the company.

Russia and the Growth of LNG
No single country generates as much interest nor as much consternation amongst energy investors worldwide today as Russia. Critically important in any consideration of the global energy sector because it holds the world’s largest gas reserves, second largest coal reserves and seventh largest oil reserves, Russia is also the world’s largest gas exporter, second largest oil exporter and third largest energy consumer. As global energy demand continues to grow then so will Russia play an increasingly pivotal role in meeting that demand? For this potential to be fully realised significant investment in Russian energy infrastructure will be required and, some say, some equally significant changes of perspective on the part of the Russian government.

Gazprom Plans to be Master of the Shelf
Gazprom, already the world’s largest gas producer, is seeking to strengthen its role in the domestic and global energy industries through an ambitious strategy to expand its presence on the Russian shelf. In order to implement these plans, Gazprom is including a role for foreign technology and foreign investment. However, since a number of the fields Gazprom plans to include in its operations are still in state hands, the success or failure in implementation may be determined by how the Ministry of Natural Resources plans to develop the Russian shelf.

Electrical Power Sector
Investment – A Way around the “Dead Zone”
Holders of shares in AO-Energos have been facing a “dead zone” in which they cannot trade in those shares while the reorganization of the electrical power sector is being completed. For some major holders of shares a breakthrough has taken place through the innovative use of derivatives. This new instrument enables investors to avoid the “dead zone” of non-liquidity for existing company shares awaiting completion of reorganization. Investors are also finding the means to anticipate future participation in the reformed, but as-yet unlisted new companies before the state registers the issue of shares for those companies and before listing on Russian exchanges.

IN THIS ISSUE

5 A Window for Foreigners
By Sergei Chernyshov
development of offshore oil and gas The technological and economicIn May, the Government of Russia announced its strategic plans for resources. In accord with this policy, private investors, including foreigners, are planned to provide the bulk of financing for development of the shelf. requirements for developing shelf resources open excellent prospects for foreign companies to enter the Russian market.

10 New Russian – Ukrainian Gas War
By Inna Gaiduk
On May 23, during a meeting with journalists from Komsomolskaya Pravda, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russian companies should do away with the practice of nonmarket settlements for exported energy resources. The president emphasized that this was particularly important with Ukraine and Georgia. Exactly two weeks later, on June 6, Gazprom Management Committee Chairman Alexei Miller met with the First Deputy Minister of Fuel and Energy of Ukraine, Oleksiy Ivchenko, who is also chairman of the management committee of Naftohaz Ukrayiny. Miller proposed that the Ukrainians pay a price of $160 per 1,000 cubic meters for Russian gas, beginning in 2006, recommended that Ukraine pay for the gas that “disappeared” from the country’s underground storage and advised Ivchenko to officially recognize that the Ukraine-Russia gas transportation consortium has no future
and should be liquidated.

16 Venture Capital Opportunities in Russian Petroleum Technologies
By Thomas D. Nastas, President, Innovative Ventures, Inc., Moscow Russia
This excerpt of a report by Innovative Ventures, Inc. (IVI) summarizes the results of the company’s investment activities to identify and finance petroleum technologies (upstream & downstream) and renewables for venture capital investment in Russian small & medium size enterprises and institutes. It is presented here to share the company’s understanding of market characteristics and technology opportunities.

23 New Siberian Mega-Basin
By Vladimir Baidashin
Russian geologists have begun preparing for gas and oil exploration over a broad area at the juncture of Western and Eastern Siberia under a special program dubbed “Vostok.” The underlying oil and gas basin was discovered by Russian geologists on the left bank of Siberia’s Yenisei River during the last decade. Siberia’s leading institutes designed the Vostok program to study the territory and late last year the Ministry of Natural Resources endorsed the program. The first auctions to sell rights to geological exploration of license blocks are to occur in 2007-2008, with commercial development expected to begin by 2013. Major energy companies are already displaying interest in the region.

29 Surgutneftegaz: The “Recluse” Awakens
By Sergei Chernyshov
Surgutneftegaz’s reluctance to become embroiled in conflicts over clouded auctions and tenders and dubious mergers and acquisitions has kept the company at home, within its traditional territory of the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous District (KhMAD). Thus, Surgutneftegaz has earned its well-deserved nickname - the Siberian Recluse. In the wake o the continuing battle to re-divide YUKOS’ assets, Surgutneftegaz has staked its claim to the Talakanskoye oil field and is making dramatic progress in preparing the field for production. Surgutneftegaz General Director Vladimir Bogdanov has begun lobbying for tariff and tax preferences for fields in new regions and has become something of a champion for companies facing the economic difficulties of Eastern Siberian projects.

35 Northgas Makes Peace with Gazprom
By Vladimir Baidashin
The longstanding confrontation between independent gas producer Northgas andGazprom has ended amicably. Under the agreement with Gazprom, Northgas retains the license for part of the Severo-Urengoiskoye field (Valanginianreservoirs), but controlling interest in Northgas (51 percent) transfers to Gazprom. Northgas also acquired the opportunity to participate in other Gazprom projects. This is a rare example in which an independent opponent has managed to defend a substantial part of its business against an onslaught from powerful Gazprom.

42 Russian Subsoil: How Much is Too Much?
By Andrey Shlyapnikov and Inna Gaiduk
A sharp increase in the sale of oil and gas assets occurred during the most recent round of auctions. Admittedly, super-high values for subsoil blocks auctioned from January through May 2005 are no guarantee of their potential. Very often common sense seemed to play second fiddle to the passions of bidders in these rounds. Nonetheless, sales at 30 to 50
times the initial offering price give the Ministry of Natural Resources reason to review its valuation criteria.

62 Karachagank Gas to be Processed in Russia
By Maria Yakovleva
Kazakhstan’s plan to independently process and sell gas from Karachaganak, the country’s largest oil and gascondensate field, are unlikely to be implemented in the near future. During Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Kazakhstan in January 2005, the Russians persuaded the Kazakhs to establish a joint venture to process gas from Karachaganak. This means that the construction of a gas processing plant in Kazakhstan, planned for the third phase of the Karachaganak project, will be postponed. These developments also mean that Gazprom will be able to further broaden its influence in the Caspian region.

73 Conference Calendar

76 Statistics
Production Statistics for April
Export Statistics for April

IN THIS ISSUE

Attracting Capital to the Russian Shelf
By Sergei Chernyshov

While Russia has limited participation of foreign companies in auctions for licenses to develop huge onshore fields, the government acknowledges that Russian companies are unable to cope with the task alone. The Ministry of Natural Resources, with support from the Federal Energy Agency (Rosenergo) and Russian companies, has proposed reforms to expedite exploration and development of shelf fields and to attract private capital to the shelf. The proposed reforms will boost the investment attractiveness of shelf exploration and exploitation; they also offer foreign companies a place in this process.

Eastern Siberian Incentives Needed
By Oleg Lukin

In the next two years the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation (MNR) intends to conduct large-scale licensing of prospective hydrocarbon resources at 79 blocks in Eastern Siberia and the Far East. The government’s goal is to develop a new resource base for export to the countries of the Asian-Pacific Region, primarily through the planned Eastern oil pipeline. However, large-scale development of Eastern Siberia may be in jeopardy. Potential investors are claiming they need better terms for development and shipping of hydrocarbons to increase profit margins for Eastern Siberian projects.

Russia-Norway Energy Dialogue
By Vladimir Baidashin

A round-table discussion on Russian-Norwegian cooperation in the oil and gas sphere took place on April 14 at the Russian State Duma with the participation of representatives of governmental bodies in charge of energy matters, oil and gas companies and industry educational institutions of both countries. Considerable attention was given to the mutual interests of Russia and Norway in further cooperation in areas such as development of hydrocarbon resources and transportation infrastructure to bring products to world markets and joint ventures between oil and gas companies of both countries in other countries.

Amerada Hess Steps into Russia
By Inna Gaiduk and Vladimir Baidashin

On March 23 the Amerada Hess Corporation announced from its headquarters in New York that it had acquired a 65-percent interest in Trabant Holdings International, the 100-percent owner of Samara-based oil company Samara-Nafta for a purchase price of $25 million. The owner of the remaining 35-percent interest in Trabant Holdings International is Simon Kukes. After Amerada Hess acquired controlling interest in Samara-Nafta, Kukes became its general director. The alliance of Kukes and Amerada Hess could become a major player in the Samara oil producing region.

Lukoil Moving Into Europe
By Inna Gaiduk and Oleg Lukin

Aside from a modest number of downstream asset acquisitions in Eastern Europe in the late 1990s, Russian company bids in subsequent years were rarely successful, even in cooperation with Western partners. Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic gave priority to integration with the European Union (EU) and thus went to great lengths to expand ties with Western investors. As a result, Russia was marginalized and left with peripheral mergers and acquisitions in the markets of the Ukraine, Bulgaria, etc. Against this backdrop, LUKOIL’s recent acquisitions in Finland and Hungary and their plans to expand into Lithuania, Serbia and Germany demonstrate a shift in tendency and sentiment in Europe.

Alternative to Turkish Straits Revived
By Vladimir Baidashin

The governments of Bulgaria, Greece and Russia, in signing a memorandum of cooperation, hope to accelerate construction of the Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline. Initially proposed nearly 12 years ago, the project would allow shipment of oil from Black Sea ports to those of the Mediterranean Sea. From there they can reach markets of Europe, the United States and the Asian-Pacific Region. The route will take shipments through Bulgaria and Greece, bypassing the Turkish straits of Bosporus and Dardanelles.

Gazprom Opens Opportunity for Independent Producers
By Andrei Andreev and Sergei Chernyshov

Gazprom has adopted a new “General Program for Gas Pipeline Network Development through 2030.” The program calls for reconstruction and expansion of the Unified Gas Distribution Network(UGDN), a gradual increase of gas supply to the Yamal Peninsula and the relocation of the company’s main producing assets to Yamal by 2030. UGDN capacity freed up as a result of the Gazprom relocation to Yamal may be utilized by independent gas producers, as well as by new investors interested in Russian gas fields.

BTC Pipeline – Who Benefits?
By Maria Yakovleva

The initiation of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline connecting the Caspian and Mediterranean seas opens a new route for shipping Caspian oil to world markets. The Kazakhstan connection to the BTC could make Turkey the leading transit hub in the region through export routes for Caspian liquid hydrocarbons. The BTC is the first export oil pipeline in the region that does not pass over Russian territory. It will reduce the dependency of Caspian countries on Russia and may increase the role of U.S. interests in the region.

Kazakh Government Enters Agip KCO
By Irina Denisova

The Kazakh government’s persist efforts to re-join the Agip KCO international consortium have recently become successful when in April it acquired half of BG’s share in the consortium. Agip KCO is implementing the North-Caspian project and developing the giant Kashagan field on Kazakhstan’s Caspian Sea shelf. BG was the owner of 16.67 percent of the shares in Agip KCO, but decided to pull out of the project. However, before KazMunaiGaz, the state-owned gas company who was the purchaser of the shares, can begin tallying its profits, it will have to shoulder the fiscal responsibilities of a shareholder.

IN THIS ISSUE ...

Access to Hydrocarbons – Open or Closed?
By Sergei Chernyshov

The Russian national budget has registered substantial gains from the renewal of open auctions for hydrocarbon blocks, which in part explains why the state has significantly expanded the auction list for 2005. Gazprom and Rosneft, however, are trying to limit competition, preclude transparency and shift the auction deadlines. Bidding on some blocks could be denied to foreign-related companies or to those not possessing sufficient technology. For foreign investors and their local affiliates, this means less predictability from government officials and increases the likelihood that the most interesting blocks will end up in the hands of state companies and their partners.

Update on Russian Subsoil Development Regime:
Situation for Foreigners Under the Present and the Draft New Subsoil Law
By Jonathan Hines, Esq.

This summary report addresses the issue of how the current draft New Subsoil Law would limit the ability of foreigners to be a license holder or a shareholder in an existing license-holding company – building on how the existing Subsoil Law regulates this area.

Rosneft Focuses on Joint Ventures
By Vladimir Baidashin

The upcoming merger with Gazprom has not deterred Rosneft from ongoing development work and serious negotiations with potential foreign joint venture partners. Rosneft is currently involved in negotiations with Marathon Oil Corporation (U.S.), Total (France), and ONGC (India). Lurking in the background is the question of whether any agreements that might be reached will be able to survive the imminent Rosneft-Gazprom merger.

Whales too Close
By Sergei Chernyshov and Andrei Shlyapnikov

The Sakhain-2 project has been grappling with an unexpected obstacle – the Okhotsk-Korean population of gray whales. Demands to comply with environmental requirements and environmental activists are everyday features of Western operating environments, but new to the Russian business climate. The Russian oil and gas sector, however, has entered a development phase in which environmental requirements will exert increasingly greater influence on virtually all projects and could affect significantly their cost and time frames.

TNK-BP Shifts Strategy for Kovykta
By Sergei Chernyshov

With the Russian government undecided about how to develop Eastern Siberian gas export pipelines, TNK-BP is pushing ahead to sell gas from the Kovykta field in domestic markets. TNK-BP has been forced to design this new strategy in order to retain control over the Kovykta gas field. However, TNK-BP’s inability to agree with Gazprom and with the government on plans for supplying gas to the Irkutsk Region may forebode new problems.

Electric Power Investment – Pause before Takeoff?
Interview with Mikail Slobodin, Integrated Energy Systems

Opinions are divided over the near and long term prospects for investment in the Russian electric power industry. Russian Petroleum Investor caught up with Mikail Slobodin, general director of Integrated Energy Systems (IES) to ask his opinion on this controversial subject.

Private Terminals vs. Transneft
By Vladimir Baidashin

Beset by pipeline capacity shortages in an environment of expanding production, Russian oil companies are turning increasingly to more expensive transportation alternatives. Some have chosen railways. Others are investing in marine transportation to avoid the trunk pipeline system of state monopoly Transneft. By constructing marine terminals and oil transfer facilities, oil companies can reduce dependency on trunk pipelines and open the possibility of exporting 100 percent of production. The expansion of private export capacity sets the stage for potential conflict with Transneft over ultimate control of Russia’s energy exports.

Gazprom’s German Strategic Partner
By Vladimir Baidashin

Gazprom has chosen a strategic partner for the Northern European gas pipeline project (NEG) and for the Yuzhno-Russkoye gas field, which will be the main source of gas supply for the pipeline. As its partner, Gazprom selected Germany’s largest chemical concern, BASF AG. Gazprom also reached agreement with the German energy concern E.ON, under which the latter has an option to acquire up to 25 percent interest in the Yuzhno-Russkoye project under certain conditions.

News Briefs

Corporate News

Kazakh Gas Revival
By Irina Denisova

The gas industry in Kazakhstan is enjoying an upturn. Experts link the latest flurry of activity to higher demand for gas, improved gas export facilities and higher worldwide gas prices. These factors are revitalizing the Kazakh gas sector, moving languishing upstream and infrastructure projects into high gear.

Investors Enter Kalymykia
By Maria Yakovleva

The oil and gas industry of Kalmykia is about to enter a new stage of development. Geologists forecast substantial oil and gas reserves in this autonomous republic in the south of Russia adjacent to the Caspian Sea. Expectations of an oil boom in the Caspian region have greatly increased foreign investor interest in Kalmykia.

Caspian Briefs

Conference Calendar

Professional Announcement

Statistics

In this issue: Russian Government Defines Interest in Foreign Investment; View from Transneft; Gazprom to Begin LNG Sales; License Restrictions on Foreigners; Unpredictable Auctions Levoberezhnoye - Another Kovykta?; Finland Bets on Timan-Pechora; Bypassing Transit Countries; Naftohaz Ukrayiny Expands; Conference Calendar Production & Export Statistics for January