Gazprom to Expand Shtokman Field at a Cost of €25 million While FID Remains Uncertain

Gazprom is set to pay 981.7 million rubles (€25 million) to attain the licence rights to the western area of the Shtokman field in the Barents Sea, expanding its already massive stake in the offshore field.

Russian newspaper Ria Novosti reports that the expansion was approved previously by the Russian federal government at a meeting in February 6th this year. 

While the development of the Shtokman field past its initial parameters sees the project move forward, the expansion is in stark contrast to the financial activities of the Shtokman consortium. Yesterday brought the news that a final investment decision (FID) on the Shtokman project, already several times delayed and previously expected to be taken by the first of April this year, will again be delayed as the partners in the project continue to hold out for tax breaks from the Russian government.

According to Moscow News, the FID is once more delayed, with the $20 billion decision set to be delayed until the start of the summer. 

The runour comes a month after Statoil CEO Helge Lund said that a decision could not be made until the financial aspects of the field were pinned down.

"We can't commit for an investment of this magnitude unless we know the fiscal terms," he told Reuters news agency at that time.

Statoil is one of three partners in the Shtokman field with a 24 per cent stake. Gazprom holds the majority stake at 51 per cent, while Total holds the remaining 25 per cent stake.