OREANDA-NEWS  On 10 December was announced, that LUKOIL presented a draft of “Environmental Safety Program for 2009-2013 and Forecast until 2017” in Volgograd.

The Program is aimed at improving the environmental management system and minimizing the negative environmental impact caused by the Company’s operations.

The Program includes activities aimed at utilization of oil and associated gas, realization of the Kyoto Protocol mechanisms, production enhancement of environmentally friendly Euro 4 and Euro 5 compliant fuel, ensuring the environmental impact is within the requirements of the national and international legislation.

LUKOIL Group Environmental Safety Program for 2009-2013 includes 494 activities totaling RUR 57.5 billion.

Estimates of LUKOIL experts suggest that the economic effect of the program implementation may come to over RUR 12 billion.

The following enterprises of the Company operate in the Southern Federal District : LUKOIL-Nizhnevolzhskneft, LUKOIL-Volgogradneftegaz, LUKOIL - Volgogradneftepererabotka, Stavrolen, LUKOIL-Yugnefteprodukt, LUKOIL-Nighnevolzhsknefteprodukt, LUKOIL-Korobkovskiy GPZ.

The amount of financing for the “Environmental Safety Program for 2009- 2013” in the Southern Federal District is expected to come to over RUR 16.4 billion.

The following objectives are expected to be achieved upon the Program implementation in the Southern Federal District:

•         A 20.2 thousand ton cut of pollutant emissions into the atmosphere;

•         A 1,676.17 ton cut of pollutant sewage discharge;

•         Water consumption decrease by 630 thousand cubic meters;

•         Recycling of 517.1 thousand tons of waste;

•         Rehabilitation of 703 hectares of disturbed and contaminated lands.

LUKOIL intends to present the “Environmental Safety Program of the LUKOIL Group organizations for 2009-2013 and the Forecast until 2017” draft by the end of 2008 to the representatives of government organizations, the general public and mass media in all federal districts of the Russian Federation where the Company operates. Thus, for the Volga Federal District the Program was presented in Perm on November 12, 2008, for the Northwestern – in Syktyvkar on November 20, 2008, for the Urals - in Khanty-Mansiysk on November 27, 2008.

Presentation of the Program for the Central Federal District will take place in Moscow on December 17, 2008.