Legendary Samotlor Field Celebrates Its 60th Anniversary
Rosneft celebrates the 60th anniversary of the discovery of the Samotlor oil field, one of the largest in the world. Its history began on May 29, 1965, when the exploratory well R-1 produced its first oil at a flow rate of 300 cubic meters per day. Just four years later, the field was put into commercial operation, and by 1981, the one-billionth tonne of oilhad been produced at Samotlor. Thanks to Samotlor’s oil, Russia secured one of the leading positions in the global oil market.
A new stage in Samotlor’s development began after Samotlorneftegaz became part of Rosneft. The company has started implementing advanced solutions and new technologies to stabilize hydrocarbon production at the field. Today, cumulative production at Samotlor exceeds 2.8 billion tonnes of oil and more than 410 billion cubic meters of gas. Samotlorneftegaz consistently maintains an associated petroleum gas utilization rate of 98%, one of the highest in the industry.
Samotlorneftegaz implements large-scale projects in close cooperation with Rosneft’s oil and gas science and technology unit, the largest in Eurasia.
Samotlorneftegaz has also been a pioneer in digitalization in Russia’s oil and gas sector. In 2013, the company implemented the “Intelligent Oilfield” system, which allows for remote management of production. As part of this initiative, an integrated mathematical model was developed, covering all key stages of oil production at the company. Based on this model, a neural network was created to optimize well performance, achieving a forecast accuracy of 96%. The introduction of another digital project—“3D Sphere”—opens up new technological opportunities that contribute to increased efficiency and safety in oil and gas production.
Samotlorneftegaz specialists use corporate software to manage the operation of mobile compressor units. As a result of this new software module, the average daily oil production per well increased by eight tonnes, and the economic effect since the introduction of this technology has exceeded 1.9 billion rubles.
Continuous work is underway at Samotlor to improve drilling equipment and technological processes. The use of a domestically produced rotary steerable system has reduced the time required to drill each well by 40 hours. This system enables drilling of complex profiles with significant deviation and longer horizontal sections, ensuring high accuracy through the productive formation and boosting the production rate of new wells.
High efficiency in horizontal well drilling has been achieved through the use of a modernized bicentric bit with a unique design. The new bit creates a larger diameter borehole, enabling faster drilling of complex profile wells and their quicker commissioning.
At the Samotlor field, the first 40-stage hydraulic fracturing was conducted. The operation took a record 24.5 hours, and the initial flow rate of the well was 250 cubic meters per day, more than six times the average rate of neighboring wells. This unique operation was carried out in collaboration with the corporate service company RN-GRP, which handles all hydraulic fracturing operations at Samotlor.
Samotlorneftegaz actively implements large-scale environmental projects. In 2024, the company allocated more than 11.2 billion rubles to environmental protection and restoration activities. A significant project to rehabilitate “legacy lands” disturbed during the Soviet-era development of the field has been completed. The biological productivity of soils has been restored on sites covering a total area of over 2,200 hectares. New technologies and unique experience were developed during the program, which are now in demand by other companies.
Samotlorneftegaz is one of the largest taxpayers and a key social partner in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug—Yugra. Over the past five years, more than 200 social projects have been implemented under the Cooperation Agreement between Rosneft and the regional government, significantly improving the quality of life for the entire population of Yugra.
With the participation of Samotlorneftegaz, a universal sports complex was built in Khanty-Mansiysk, the Simulation and Accreditation Center at the Khanty-Mansiysk State Medical Academy was upgraded, and two educational laboratories were equipped at the Multidisciplinary College of Yugra State University. Thanks to the company’s support, a large-scale reconstruction of Nizhnevartovsk’s embankment, the Heroes of Samotlor Square, and various sports and recreation facilities—including a kindergarten, youth clubs, a roller skating rink, and an outdoor rope park—were carried out. In the Nizhnevartovsk district, kindergartens, the Okunevka embankment, and major road repairs were completed, significantly improving road quality and safety.
Rosneft places great emphasis on preserving and strengthening the historical legacy of the Samotlor field and the pioneer oil workers of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug—Yugra. With the company’s support, the R-1 Exploratory Well Memorial at Samotlor was renovated, the Conquerors of Samotlor Monument was restored, the Heroes of Samotlor Square was established, and a corporate museum was opened.
Rosneft continues to develop the Samotlor field and bring its resource potential into production, contributing to the economy of the region and the entire country.
