New US sanctions against Russian oil

Severnoye Siyaniye semi-submersible drilling rig in Yuzhno-Kirinskoye field. (Gazprom)
Severnoye Siyaniye semi-submersible drilling rig in Yuzhno-Kirinskoye field. (Gazprom)
Washington has introduced sanctions against Gazprom’s Yuzhno-Kirinskoye field, one of the biggest hydrocarbon projects on the Russian shelf.

The move could have consequences for Statoil’s cooperation with Rosneft in a nearby license.

The new sanctions include deliveries of a wide range of equipment and expertise for the project, and will significantly complicate operator Gazprom’s field development, newspaper Vedomosti reports.

The Yuzhno-Kirinskoye holds an estimated 636 billion cubic meters of gas, as well as 97 million tons of gas condensate, Gazprom says on its website. It is planned to become the key source of gas for the Sakhalin-3 project, the grand initiative which includes the construction of the Vladivostok LNG plant.

Kirinsky block fields within Sakhalin III project. (Gazprom)
Kirinsky block fields within Sakhalin III project. (Gazprom)
Sanctions could affect Statoil

Yuzhno-Kirinskoye is located in the Sea of Okhotsk, off the coast of Sakhalin. Field project production is originally planned for year 2018.

The expansion of U.S sanctions could ultimately hit also Norwegian company Statoil, which together with Rosneft is planning exploration drilling in a neighboring Okhotsk Sea license.

The additional sanctions come as a reaction to what the USA sees as Russia’s continued comprehensive involvement in the conflict in eastern Ukraine. In September 2014, U.S. authorities adopted its previous round of sanctions against the Russian oil and gas industry, directed first of all against the country’s  deepwater, Arctic offshore, or shale projects.

In addition, the Russian companies hit have been deprived their possibilities to get credits from US and EU financial institutions.

Related stories from around the North:

Canada:  Greenpeace responds to report Canada is ill-prepared for Arctic oil, Radio Canada International

Finland:  Finland’s last nuclear project?, Yle News

Norway: Russian sanctions hit Norway hard, Barents Observer

Russia: Russia’s Arctic oil rig reaches 4 million barrels,  Barents Observer

United States:  Why Shell is sticking to Chukchi plans, Alaska Dispatch News

Atle Staalesen, The Independent Barents Observer

For more news from the Barents region visit The Independent Barents Observer.

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