Russian state-controlled oil giant Rosneft will invest $16 billion in the project to develop the Carabobo 2 bloc in the southern Orinoco extra-heavy crude belt in Venezuela, Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin said on Thursday.
Rosneft will implement the project jointly with Venezuela's state company PDVSA. Commercial oil production at the bloc is expected to hit 400,000 barrels per day.
Rosneft is also one of several Russian oil companies that have formed a consortium to develop the Junin bloc 6 of the Orinoco belt in Venezuela.
Russia’s National Oil Consortium (NOC) to develop the Junin bloc 6 comprises Gazprom Neft, Rosneft, TNK-BP, Surgutneftegas and LUKoil. Surgutneftegas has announced plans to sell its 20 percent stake in the project to Rosneft. The deal will make Rosneft the managing company of Junin 6.
Total investment in the Junin project will reach $20 billion over 40 years, Sechin said, adding the Russian oil major expected to produce the first batch of crude oil at the bloc on Thursday.
The Junin 6 block's geological reserves include 52.6 billion barrels of oil, while recoverable reserves amount to 10.96 billion barrels. The block area totals 447.85 square kilometers.
