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In other news, Nigeria has signed a memoran- justification for curbing oil and gas activity in
dum of understanding (MoU) on potentially the area. The court is due to give a final verdict at
obtaining petroleum product supplies from around the turn of the year.
neighbouring Niger. Nigeria’s petroleum min- Over in Romania, Russia’s Lukoil is under-
istry said the non-binding accord covered the stood to be seeking an exit at offshore block
transportation and storage of oil products. EX-3-Trident, further dimming prospects for
Talks on this subject have been ongoing for four the country’s Black Sea gas development. Lukoil
months between Nigeria’s state-owned NNPC has an 87.8% stake in the block, while Romgaz
and its counterpart in Niger, SONIDEP. holds the remaining interest. Initial exploratory
Niger’s 20,000 bpd Soraz refinery is situated work at the site in 2015 had indicated potential
in Zinder, some 260 km from the Nigerian bor- recoverable gas deposits of around 30bn cubic
der. According to the ministry, Niger’s domestic metres.
fuel demand is only 5,000 bpd, leaving a surplus The move comes amid continued frustration
of 15,000 bpd of capacity available for export. over offshore legislation passed in 2018, which
developers claim has made their projects unfea-
If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping sible. The government has promised to address
the downstream sector of Africa and the Middle East, the industry’s concerns after the country’s parlia-
then please click here for NewsBase’s DMEA Monitor. mentary elections in early December. But con- Rosneft estimates
sidering the bearish conditions on European gas Vostok Oil’s
Europe: Norway launches new investor call markets at present, this may be seen as too little,
The main news in the European oil industry too late. liquids resource
this week is Norway’s launch of its 25th frontier
licensing round, aimed at driving forward explo- If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping base at 6bn boe
ration in relatively unexplored regions. Europe’s oil and gas sector then please click here for
Authorities have invited firms to bid for 136 NewsBase’s EurOil Monitor.
new exploration blocks in eight frontier zones in
the Barents Sea and one zone in the Norwegian FSU: Rosneft attracts first Arctic partner
Sea. Companies have until February 23 2021 to Russian state oil company Rosneft looks finally
file their bids, and awards should occur the fol- set to succeed in attracting a foreign partner to its
lowing month. flagship Vostok Oil project in the Arctic, which it
Unlike Norway’s annual awards in predefined says will one day yield over 2mn barrels per day
areas (APA) rounds, which seek operators for (bpd) of oil.
blocks in mature areas of the shelf, its numbered Rosneft said last week that its board of direc-
rounds occur at less regular intervals in areas tors had agreed on the sale of a 10% stake in its
where infrastructure is scarcer and drilling risks Vostok Oil LLC subsidiary to Trafigura for an
greater. But wells can also yield potentially large undisclosed sum. The pair are “at the advanced
discoveries. stage of negotiations” on closing the transaction,
The round’s launch comes less than a week Trafigura was quoted as saying by Kommersant.
after the country’s Supreme Court finished Vostok Oil is set to combine the fields in Ros-
hearing a case brought by environmentalists neft’s Vankor cluster – Vankorskoye, Lodoch-
that disputes the previous award of acreage in noye, Suzunskoye and Tagulskoye – with the
the Barents Sea. A lawsuit, backed by Green- Paiyakha fields held by Neftegazholding, a pri-
peace Norway and Nature and Youth, is attempt- vate oil firm owned by former Rosneft president
ing to use Norway’s founding principles as a Eduard Khudainatov.

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 47 25•November•2020