International Projects
On March 22 2005, Apollo Resources International finalized the acquisition of JSC Kaliningradneft, one of three oil companies in the far-western Russian province of Kaliningrad. JSC Kaliningradneft currently produces over 250,000 barrels of oil per year from 8 wells. It has leased rights to 300 square kilometers in the province and is in final stages to lease acquire lease rights to an additional 225 square kilometers (87 sq. miles).
Located at the southeastern corner of the Baltic Sea, sandwiched between northern Poland and Southern Lithuania, the province has 150 kilometers (93 miles) of Baltic-Sea shoreline. Russian rule over the province was formed in 1945 as a result of the post-World War II, Potsdam Agreement. Kaliningrad had been part of German East Prussia.
The province proudly boasts at having one of the only Baltic Sea ports that does not freeze over in winter(1). In part due to its geographic isolation from Russia, 95% of the province’s oil is exported – sold into global markets. The province is officially a Special Economic Zone by way of a set of five Russian Federation laws.
Total geographic area of the province is about 15,100 square kilometers (5,830 sq. miles). It has leased rights for exploration and production to about 300 square kilometers (116 sq. miles) of the province, and is in final negotiations for rights to an additional 225 square kilometers (87 sq. miles).
Production for January 2005 has been reported at 32,000 barrels of oil. With no further field development, engineers at JSC Kaliningradneft forecast at total of 950,000 barrels of oil through August 2009. Currently, there are eight operating wells and in two fields, Veselovsk and Novo-Serebryansk.
Perhaps best known for its abundant Amber deposits, Kaliningrad became truly separated from the rest of Russia (225 miles east), in 1991, when Poland and Lithuania were declared independent from the Soviet Union. Both Lithuania and Poland became members of the European Union in 2004. In as much, Kaliningradneft was formally turned into a “Special Economic Zone” through a series of Russian Federation laws, enacted between 1996 and 1998.
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