Rosnedra Notes a Sharp Decline in Funding for Geological Exploration on Sakhalin
According to the head of the department of geology of oil and gas, groundwater and structures of the agency Nina Erofeeva, this is due to the pandemic and sanctions
Rosnedra has noted a sharp decline in funding for geological exploration work on Sakhalin since 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic and sanctions, said Nina Erofeeva, head of the department of oil and gas geology, groundwater and structures of Rosnedra, during a speech at the Oil and Gas of Sakhalin forum.
“In terms of financing geological exploration, it would seem that everything has been created for this, there are licenses, but, unfortunately, we have seen such a sharp decline since 2020. The reasons are known to everyone: the pandemic, then sanctions. And, unfortunately, we have not yet come out of this peak came out. We really hope to increase the volume of geological exploration,” she said.
As follows from Erofeeva’s presentation, the total costs for exploration in 2019 amounted to 23.85 billion rubles, in 2020 – only 8.78 billion rubles, in 2021 – 9.88 billion rubles, in 2022 – 6.7 billion rubles , and the plan for 2023 is 7.35 billion rubles.
In addition, Rosnedra in 2020-2022 carried out work to assess the oil and gas potential of the sedimentary basins of the Sea of Okhotsk. Based on its results, it turned out that the resources of the Sea of Okhotsk have decreased significantly, and the main prospects of the area are associated with the development of delta complexes.
“The resources of the Sea of Okhotsk have decreased quite significantly. The area of development of oil and gas-bearing areas has been somewhat specified and decreased. The central part of the Sea of Okhotsk is unpromising, since the thickness of the sedimentary cover there is very insignificant,” Erofeeva said.
The initial total resources onshore Sakhalin are 291.5 million tons for oil and 337 billion cubic meters for gas. m, on the shelf of the Sea of Okhotsk: for oil – about 2.4 billion tons, for gas – more than 7 trillion cubic meters. m. “Despite the high depletion of existing fields, there is potential for an increase in reserves, especially for gas,” noted the head of the Rosnedr department, commenting on the indicators of resources onshore Sakhalin.
About the forum
The international energy forum “Oil and Gas of Sakhalin – 2023” opened on Wednesday in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. For three days, until September 29 inclusive, there will be round tables, one-on-one meetings with project operators, debates, panel discussions and the signing of strategic agreements with the government of the Sakhalin region, as well as an exhibition of hydrocarbon production, transportation and processing enterprises. More than 1 thousand experts will take part in the event. In addition to Russian guests, business delegations from China, Vietnam and India are expected.
This year the forum will celebrate its 27th anniversary. For the first nine years it was held in London with the aim of attracting investments and partners in oil and gas projects in the Sakhalin region, then in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.
