Novatek Secures New Gydan Gas Licence
Russia's Novatek has secured exploration and production rights to the Bukharinsky gas block on the Gydan Peninsula, it reported on April 28.
The 2,447-km2 block straddles the shore of the Ob Bay and borders Novatek’s Soletsko-Khanaveyskoye field and the Trekhbugorny licence area. It holds 1.19 trillion m3 of gas and 74mn mt of liquids, according to Novatek, coming to around 8.4bn barrels of oil equivalent in total.
The company paid just rubles 2.35bn ($38mn) for a 30-year licence for the block at an auction concluded in December. The terms of this licence stipulate that its resources must be used for LNG production.
Novatek has said before that the neighbouring Soletsko-Khanaveyskoye field will serve as the main resource base its Arctic LNG-1 project. Arctic LNG-1 is expected to produce up to 20mn mt/yr of LNG, but the project is still at the design phase.
The company plans to begin full-scale geological and geophysical work at Bukharinsky, and drill its first well there, in the 2020/2021 exploration season, it said.