Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Pastimes : Clown-Free Zone... sorry, no clowns allowed -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Knighty Tin who wrote (238120)	4/29/2003 3:01:21 PM
From: Haim R. Branisteanu	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 436258

Tuesday, Apr. 29, 2003. Page 5 LUKoil Reserves Make It World No. 2 By Valeria Korchagina Staff Writer LUKoil said Monday its proven hydrocarbon reserves have grown 17 percent since Jan. 1, 2002 to 19.7 billion barrels of oil equivalent, keeping it the world's second-largest by reserves after ExxonMobil. The new figure represents 19.3 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) proven under the standards of the Society of Petroleum Engineers as of Jan. 1, plus another 400 million boe that the company has acquired since, putting it just ahead of supermajor-to-be YukosSibneft. Most of the growth came from new reserves of natural gas. LUKoil said its gas reserves are up 82 percent and oil reserves 5 percent since the beginning of 2002. At current levels LUKoil can produce at its current rate of 570 million barrels per year for nearly 30 years. Despite its huge inventory, however, LUKoil is only the No. 10 oil and gas producer in the world -- No. 11 if Gazprom is included. "LUKoil does not need that much reserves," said Steven Dashevsky, oil analyst at investment bank Aton. "It should be looking to boost production, particularly given the fact that its competitors in western Siberia -- Yukos and Sibneft -- are producing 10 percent to 15 percent more every year, while LUKoil adds 1, 2 or 3 percent." In the first three months of the year, Sibneft and Yukos increased production 26 percent and 22 percent, respectively, according to Energy Ministry statistics. Yukos spokesman Hugo Erikssen said LUKoil's figures should force the West to re-evaluate Russia's oil and gas reserves, which are still technically considered a state secret. "LUKoil's new figures indicate that overall perception of Russia's reserves in the West is considerably lower than the true state of affairs. Now, it appears, the process of re-evaluation has started," he said. Leonid Mirzoyan, oil and gas analyst at Deutsche Bank, said LUKoil's decision to increase the proportion of gas in its total reserves was strategically sound in the long term, particularly if independent producers are finally allowed to edge in on Gazprom's monopoly. LUKoil's figures suggest that gas grew from 11 percent to 21 percent of LUKoil's total reserves. LUKoil vice president Yury Storozhev told a gas conference in Moscow on Monday that the company plans to invest $19 billion into its gas and petrochemical divisions through 2030, Interfax reported. LUKoil said it expects to add a further 2.9 trillion cubic meters of gas, equal to 17 million boe, to its reserves by 2020. Storozhev said that by 2020, LUKoil is planning to produce 11.2 billion cubic meters of gas per year. By 2030, that figure should grow to 95 billion cubic meters, equal to about 16 percent of Russia's total expected gas production this year, he said. "It is always tomorrow with LUKoil. But when does tomorrow start?" said Stephen O'Sullivan, head of research at United Financial Group. "LUKoil's competitors also have extremely rosy outlooks, but they manage to deliver more impressive results now," he said.