From Russia Beyond the Headlines
"Rosneft has taken a 30 percent stake in 20 deepwater exploration blocks in the Gulf of Mexico held by U.S. giant Exxon Mobil, the Russian company announced after its CEO, Igor Sechin, set out the company’s ambitious plans to an international audience of investors on March 6 at the Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA) Week in Houston, Texas.
Sechin, an influential former deputy prime minister and close ally of President Vladimir Putin, emphasized Rosneft’s increased collaboration with foreign oil companies, such as Exxon, Italy’s Eni and Norway’s Statoil, to attract investment for the exploration of Russia's offshore energy fields. Rosneft already has a strategic partnership with Britain’s BP, which last year became a major
shareholder in Rosneft in exchange for its 50 percent stake in TNK-BP.
"Rosneft has taken a 30 percent stake in 20 deepwater exploration blocks in the Gulf of Mexico held by U.S. giant Exxon Mobil, the Russian company announced after its CEO, Igor Sechin, set out the company’s ambitious plans to an international audience of investors on March 6 at the Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA) Week in Houston, Texas.
Sechin, an influential former deputy prime minister and close ally of President Vladimir Putin, emphasized Rosneft’s increased collaboration with foreign oil companies, such as Exxon, Italy’s Eni and Norway’s Statoil, to attract investment for the exploration of Russia's offshore energy fields. Rosneft already has a strategic partnership with Britain’s BP, which last year became a major
shareholder in Rosneft in exchange for its 50 percent stake in TNK-BP.
"After the acquisition closing, which is expected to take place early in the second quarter of 2013, Rosneft will provide to its investors an updated synergies forecast for the united company," Sechin said during the CERA conference.
Rosneft is in the process of buying 100 percent of TNK-BP. According to a Rosneft statement, the purchase is slated to be completed in the first half of this year. Rosneft will pay BP some $12 billion in cash and the British company will be getting a 19.7 percent stock interest in the Russian outfit. Rosneft plans to pay the AAR consortium (Alfa Group, Access Industries and Renova), the other TNK-BP shareholder, $28 billion in cash for its stake.
After the Rosneft´s TNK-BP takeover is completed.
BP´s partnership with Rosneft could increase, joint ventures could be done in the Artic and off shore
fields, and they will might include joint production by BP and Rosneft in Venezuela.
The deal with ExxonMobil will give Rosneft 30 percent in offshore blocks covering a total area of 450 square kilometers. Seventeen are located in the western Gulf of Mexico, and the other three are in the central Guld. Depths vary from 640 meters to 2,070 meters.
ExxonMobil is also expected to participate in the exploration of Rosneft's offshore fields in Russia together with Eni and Statoil. Together, Rosneft’s partners could invest up to $14 billion into geological exploration".
