BUSINESS & ECONOMICS
1/26/09
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A subsidiary of the Russian energy giant Gazprom has lost $215 million dollars looking for hydrocarbon deposits on the "swampy" remains of the Aral Sea, a company official has revealed.
The director of Gazprom-Zarubezhneftegaz, Maksut Anderzhanov, is quoted by the Uzbek newspaper Pravda Vostoka that 12 exploratory wells drilled since 2006 on Uzbekistan’s Ustyurt Plateau have failed to find viable gas deposits. Only one field, Shakhpakhty, has proven reserves, he added.
A report, published January 26 in the Uzbek newspaper Vesti, added that heavy equipment used in Aral exploration was proving useless. In particular, Gazprom found that 14 sites on the dried sea bed presented more difficulty than expected logistical challenges.
In a separate interview with the Regnum news agency on Januray 24, Anderzhanov said Gazprom’s investments in the remote corner of Uzbekistan would continue. "The program of exploration work consists of three stages. Each subsequent stage depends on the previous one. That is, the project is constantly adjusted," he said, adding that by 2011, the total investment would reach $400 million.
Posted January 26, 2009 © Eurasianet
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