MOSCOW, September 15 (RIA Novosti) – Following the new Western sanctions imposed on Russia, Anglo-Dutch multinational oil and gas company, Shell, is considering the potential impact the measures will have on the company and has recently appealed to EU authorities to clarify the situation, a spokesman for Shell in Russia told RIA Novosti on Monday.
"We are proud of our strong partnership with Russian companies. Shell brings its technical and commercial expertise for the implementation of energy projects in Russia. We will explore the latest sanctions and their possible impact on our business. We are in consultations with (the) relevant government agencies to obtain the most complete information,” the company’s spokesman said adding that Shell was taking all the necessary steps to act in accordance with the sanctions.
The European Union and the United States introduced a new round of sanctions against Russia September 12, targeting the country's largest banks, energy and defense companies, as well as individuals.
Specifically, the European Union restricted several large Russian companies from seeking capital on European financial markets, including oil companies Rosneft, Transneft and Gazprom Neft. The European Union also banned companies from its member states from providing technical and other assistance to Russian companies in the field of oil exploration and production, specifically in the areas of Arctic Sea drilling and shale oil projects. Private and institutional investors cannot lend to Russian oil companies for more than 30 days, purchase or trade bonds, shares and other financial instruments with a term of more than 30 days.
Gazprom is Shell’s largest Russian partner. The two companies are jointly implementing a project known as Sakhalin II. Gazprom owns 50 percent of Sakhalin Energy, a joint international operator of Sakhalin II run by Russia, UK and Japan. Shell and Gazprom Neft also own Salym Petroleum Development (SPD) on a parity basis. The output of crude by SPD amounted to 7 million tons of oil in 2013.
