OREANDA-NEWS. Rosneft and BP have today signed final binding agreements to create a new joint venture, Yermak Neftegaz LLC, to conduct exploration in the West Siberian and Yenisey-Khatanga basins in the Russian Federation.

The document was signed at the XX St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) by Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin and President of BP Russia David Campbell.

The joint venture will focus on onshore exploration of two Areas of Mutual Interest (AMIs) in the West Siberian and Yenisey-Khatanga basins covering a combined area of about 260,000 square kilometers. Yermak Neftegaz will be owned 51 per cent by Rosneft and 49 per cent by BP. In the initial stage, the joint venture will carry out further appraisal work on the 2009 Rosneft-discovered Baikalovskiy field inside the Yenisey-Khatanga AMI and on exploration of Zapadno-Yarudeiskoye, Kheiginskoye and Anomalnoye licenses in the West Siberian AMI.

Exploration activities in the two AMIs will include regional research, acquisition of seismic data and drilling of exploration wells, with the beginning of field works anticipated in the winter season of 2016 / 2017. The preliminary agreement relating to this project was signed at SPIEF in 2015.

BP has committed to provide up to $300 million in two phases as its contribution to the cost of the JV’s activities at the exploration stage. Rosneft will contribute licenses and operational experience in West Siberia and Yenisey-Khatanga with initial drilling to be performed by Rosneft subsidiaries.