Interfax, citing a BP-Sakhalin insider, said, “BP and Rosneft signed a contract with the company Transocean to rent the deep-water drilling unit to drill the first well to a depth of 4,000 metres at the Kaigan-Vasyugan license block at the Pela Lech structure, as part of the Sakhalin-5 project. The unit will start drilling the first well in the first 10 days of July. A total of five exploration wells should be drilled at the Sakhalin-5 project.”
“BP will finance 100% of work on geological surveys and evaluations at the Kaigan-Vasyugan block. The first well will cost over US$50 million [and] if it confirms the presence of commercial reserves of oil and gas BP and Rosneft will agree a strategy for further financing,” added the informant.
The operator will be a JV company, Elvari Neftegaz, which was registered at Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk this year. Rosneft holds a 51% stake in the company with the balance being held by BP.
