ExxonMobil Corp. and Russia’s state-owned OAO Rosneft have agreed to expand a 2011 strategic cooperation agreement that significantly expands exploration and development plans, and offers Rosneft a big stake in the Point Thomson, AK, natural gas and condensate project.

In 2011 the majors forged a joint agreement to explore and develop global oil and gas projects, including in Texas and the Gulf of Mexico (see Daily GPI, Aug. 31, 2011). Technology sharing also was included in the partnership.

“This expansion is an illustration of the strength of the partnership that exists between ExxonMobil and Rosneft,” said ExxonMobil Exploration Co. President Stephen Greenlee.

Rosneft was given an option under a separate Heads of Agreement to obtain a one-quarter interest in the Point Thomson Unit, considered Alaska’s largest undeveloped gas and oilfield, on the North Slope. Point Thomson, operated by ExxonMobil, includes 38 state leases on 93,000 acres and holds an estimated 25% of the known gas resource base in the North Slope, or about 8 Tcf. Partners include ConocoPhillips, BP plc and Leede Operating Co.

In December the Regulatory Commission of Alaska granted ExxonMobil’s PTE Pipeline LLC a permit to construct and operate a condensate pipeline connecting Point Thomson facilities with BP’s Badami Pipeline on the North Slope (see Daily GPI, Dec. 12, 2012). The condensate pipeline is required under a settlement that resolves years of disputes related to the unit’s development, (see Daily GPI, April 2, 2012).

Under the updated agreement, seven Arctic license areas were added that cover about 150 million acres in Russia’s Chukchi, Laptev and Kara seas.

ExxonMobil and Rosneft separately signed a memorandum of understanding to study the economic viability of a liquefied natural gas development in the Russian Far East. The companies plan to form a joint working group to study the project’s viability using available gas resources.

“The agreements signed today bring the already unprecedented scale of the Rosneft and ExxonMobil partnership up to a completely new level,” said Rosneft President Igor Sechin. “The acreage in the Russian Arctic subject to geological exploration and subsequent development increased nearly six-fold. That means the enormous resource potential of Russian Arctic offshore fields will be explored and developed in the most efficient manner with the application of cutting-edge technologies and expertise of our strategic partner, ExxonMobil, and using state-of-the-art environmental protection systems.

“Participation in the Point Thomson project will increase Rosneft’s access to the latest gas and condensate field development technologies used in harsh climatic conditions.”

The seven new blocks opened for joint exploration include Severo-Vrangelevsky-1, Severo-Vrangelevsky-2 and Yuzhno-Chukotsky blocks in the Chukchi Sea; Ust’ Oleneksky, Ust’ Lensky and Anisinsko Novosibirsky blocks in the Laptev Sea; and Severo Karsky block in the Kara Sea.

“The companies are committed to using global best practices and state-of-the-art safety and environmental protection systems for the Arctic operations,” Rosneft and ExxonMobil officials said. “The work will be supported by the recently signed declaration on the Russian Arctic Shelf environmental protection. Also, ExxonMobil and Rosneft will work together through an Arctic Research Center to provide a full range of research and design services to support their cooperation on Arctic projects.”

The partners plan to continue to use staff exchanges among their technical and management employees “to help strengthen relationships between the companies.”

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