OREANDA-NEWS. In the third quarter of 2014, oil production at the Company's fields totalled 4,596 thousand tonnes, up 11.2% compared to the third quarter of 2013. In the third quarter of 2014, average daily production reached 50 thousand tonnes per day; by the end of third quarter, daily production exceeded 51 thousand tonnes per day.

In the third quarter of 2014, strong growth of oil production was driven by a 3.8% increase in production at brownfields due to highly efficient geological and engineering operations and by production growth at the R. Trebs and A. Titov fields in the Nenets Autonomous District and at the Sorovskoye field in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous District, which accounted for 9.4% of oil production in the third quarter of 2014.

During the nine months of 2014, Bashneft produced 13,085 thousand tonnes of oil, which is 10.0% more than during the same period in 2013.

In the third quarter of 2014, Bashneft's refining complex processed 5,524 thousand tonnes of oil, which is comparable to the same period in 2013. At the same time, in the third quarter of 2014, the average share of light products and average refining depth remained virtually unchanged year-on-year: the share of light products amounted to 59.25%, while refining depth stood at 85.02%.

In the third quarter of 2014, the output of commercial products declined by 2.1% year-on-year (to 5,055 thousand tonnes) due to a number of operational factors. The output of gasoline decreased by 1.1% to 1,169 thousand tonnes. The 3.9% year-on-year reduction in the output of diesel fuel (to 1,881 thousand tonnes) was related to an improvement in the product mix through an increase in production of niche light products.

For example, in the third quarter of 2014, the output of bunker fuel, which is included in the category 'Other', added 120.4% year-on-year and reached 108 thousand tonnes, while during the nine months of 2014, it grew more than fourfold to 228 thousand tonnes.

During the nine months of 2014, Bashneft's refineries processed 16,323 thousand tonnes of hydrocarbons, which is 1.7% more than during the same period in 2013. During the nine months of 2014, average refining depth (84.93%) and the average share of light products (60.09%) were also little changed. During the nine months of 2014, the output of commercial products gained 1.6% year-on-year, whereas the output of gasoline and diesel fuel remained at the level reached during the nine months of 2013.

At the same time, the start of pilot operation of two new units (a catalytic cracking gasoline hydrotreater at the Bashneft-UNPZ Branch and a hydrogen production unit at the Bashneft-Novoil Branch) enabled the Company to increase the output of light products of higher quality.

As a result, in the third quarter of 2014, the Company's production of Euro 5 gasoline increased by 32.6% year-on-year (to 1,047 thousand tonnes), while during the nine months of 2014, it grew by 34.1% to 3,120 thousand tonnes. In the third quarter of 2014, the output of Euro 5 diesel fuel totalled 706 thousand tonnes, up 14.8% year-on-year. During the nine months of 2014, the Company produced 1,923 thousand tonnes of Euro 5 diesel fuel, which is 21.7% more than during the nine months of 2013.