Rosneft, the biggest Russian oil company, plans to invest $20 billion over five years to turn itself into a rival to the world's energy giants, chief executive Sergey Bogdanchikov told the Financial Times on Dec. 6. Bogdanchikov said Rosneft would expand to the scale of BP and ExxonMobil Corp by the end of the decade.
He also forecast that output would increase to more than 2.0 million barrels per day over the coming three years from 1.8 million bpd this year. It would increase to 3.0 million bpd by 2015.
Two-thirds of Rosneft's oil-product exports are destined for Europe and Bogdanchikov stressed that his company would look to make downstream acquisitions in Europe without disclosing any specific targets. "Even today we are dependent on the European market," Bogdanchikov said in an interview with the newspaper. "What will be in demand in Europe is more crude oil and refined products ... we are opening more terminals to reach the European market."
Of the $20 billion investment, the newspaper said $5 billion would be spent in 2007 and 70% would be earmarked for upstream operations.
Growth is seen in Rosneft's western Siberia, eastern Siberia and Sakhalin fields, the FT said.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2006
