OREANDA-NEWS. On February 08, 2007 Timothy Summers, Chief Operating Officer of TNK-BP, said to the press that the way of oil transportation from the Verkhnechonsk field before the East Siberia–Pacific Ocean pipeline is commissioned and put into operation will be finally made by the end of this year, reported the press-centre of TNK-BP.

Mr. Summers noted that oil from the Verkhnechonsk field will be transported in the westward before the oil pipeline is put into operation.

“We will start commercial production of oil in the Verkhnechonsk field in late 2008 when Transneft is ready to transport this oil. Now, we are analyzing possibilities to pump oil from the Verkhnechonsk field in the western direction before the time the East Siberia–Pacific Ocean pipeline system is ready for operation,” explained he.

Currently, there are two ways of oil transportation – either through the system of existing oil pipelines, or by rail.

“Discussions on this issue are still underway, and a final decision will be made by the end of the year,” said Mr. Summers. TNK-BP is constructing an oil pipeline 90 km long from the Verkhnechonsk field to the East Siberia–Pacific Ocean pipeline system. Approximately 45% of works have been accomplished now, and the pipeline will be ready for operation in summer 2008.

According to Mr. Summers, 25 production wells are now drilled in the field, and this number will grow up to 45–50 by the end of 2008. Apart from that, a decision will be made in 2008 on the volume of drilling works in the Verkhnechonsk field in the nearest years.

Mr. Summers informed that 30,000 tons of oil has been produced in the field now, more than 320,000 tons will be produced in 2008, and about 1 million tons will be produced in 2009. Then, oil production is expected to grow up to 3 million tons a year. According to plans, oil production in the field may reach a peak of 7–8 million tons in 2011.

Estimates of TNK-BP show that the recoverable oil reserves in the Verkhnechonsk field run up to approximately 1 billion barrels. According to the State Reserves Commission, the oil reserves in the field of categories C1 and C2 amount to 200 million tons. Rosneft and TNK-BP are going to invest $4–5 billion in the nearest 5–8 years into development of the Verkhnechonsk field, $2 billion of which will be used for drilling and infrastructure development.

TNK-BP plans that the Verkhnechonsk and Uvat fields will become sources of oil production growth for the company beginning from 2009.

Currently, 68,4% of Verkhnechonskneftegaz is owned by TNK-BP and 25,94% by Rosneft.

The first line of the East Siberia–Pacific Ocean pipeline was expected to be put into operation in late 2008, but Nikolai Tokarev, President of Transneft (the pipeline monopoly implementing the pipeline construction project), said on Thursday that the system will be commissioned only in Q4 2009.