OREANDA-NEWS. On July 22, 2009 Sakhalin Energy announced that it has exported its 200th oil cargo. The Sakhalin Island, a PRISCO-owned tanker on long-term charter to the company, will deliver some 100,000 tonnes of oil from the Company’s offshore facilities in the Sea of Okhotsk to a refinery in South Korea, reported the press-centre of Sakhalin Energy.

“Our 200th oil cargo is clear evidence of Sakhalin’s emerging role as a key energy hub for the Asia-Pacific region”, said Sakhalin Energy CEO Ian Craig. “The increasing frequency of oil cargo shipments will also be matched and then exceeded by the frequency of LNG shipments as we build up to plateau in the second half of this year”.

Sakhalin Energy, which pioneered the development of the Sakhalin shelf, has been producing oil offshore since 1999. Production from Molikpaq – Russia’s first offshore oil platform - was initially carried out on a seasonal basis during the ice-free period. Year-round production began on 12 December 2008 following completion of the offshore and onshore oil infrastructure. Exports are now handled from a purpose-built port at Prigorodnoye. A second oil platform – PA-B – came on stream the same month. Following first gas from the Lun-A platform and the commissioning of Russia’s first LNG plant in February 2009, oil exports have risen due to the addition of gas condensate. The new oil blend “Vityaz” has now been successfully sold into the Asia-Pacific market for 10 years.

Since commercial oil production began, Sakhalin Energy has exported over 126 million barrels of “Vityaz” to Asia-Pacific customers. With its low sulfur content and high levels of light and medium-light hydrocarbon fractions, this crude is used to produce petrol, kerosene, diesel and as a feedstock for the petrochemical industry. Sakhalin Energy is now exporting oil and gas to refineries and energy companies in Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan, the USA, the Philippines and Thailand.