The list of companies licensed to develop the Russian sea shelf will be expanded, Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin said on Tuesday.
"The list of companies permitted not only to prospect but also produce [hydrocarbons on the shelf] will be enlarged," he said.
At present this privilege is only enjoyed by two state control companies - Gazprom and Rosneft.
"The Ministry of Natural Resources has granted only five licenses over the last two years, and all of them were given after pressure from the government. They [the ministry] should be more active. We will request them to speed up the process," Sechin said.
Sechin also said the government believes foreign investors could be easily attracted to Russia's sea shelf.
Russian gas giant Gazprom is currently holding negotiations with Korean companies on their participation in the development of the Western-Kamchatka peninsula shelf.
The minister also said that that the two companies that operate on the shelf at the present moment are not enough to develop it, adding that Gazprom subsidiaries and foreign partners with less than a 50% stake should be allowed to explore the gas deposits of the shelf.
MOSCOW, May 18 (RIA Novosti)
