In April, state-controlled oil giant Rosneft started drilling the northernmost well on the Russian Arctic shelf in the Khatangsky license area in the Laptev Sea. In June, Rosneft struck first oil in the Eastern Arctic in this license. Earlier this month, the oil firm said that recoverable reserves at the field exceed 80 million tons of oil, which is equal to around 586.4 million barrels. Geological data point to reserves at the field at 298 million tons of oil, or some 2.184 billion barrels, and the oil is high quality—light and low-sulfur, according to Rosneft. The Russian oil giant—whose CEO Igor Sechin is a close ally of Vladimir Putin—continues to drill at the field to study its geology, search for more oil, and define future drilling strategies at the license, Rosneft says. Rosneft and Gazprom’s oil unit Gazprom Neft are the only two companies allowed to drill in the […]