Rosneft’s chief executive Igor Sechin expects Brent could reach US$80 a barrel by this year’s end, Interfax reports citing a TV interview of the oil tycoon. The company’s budget for the year is based on a much lower price, at US$63 a barrel, Sechin added, so it’s hardly a surprise the CEO is happy with where prices are now. Rosneft reported a sevenfold increase in its net profit for the first quarter of this year on the back of higher oil prices, event though production was lower. The company accounts for about 40 percent of Russia’s total oil production, which has made it key for the production cut Russia agreed with OPEC. Now that production is once again on the rise following loud complaints from some of the biggest importers of crude, Rosneft stands to benefit more than smaller companies. The company has made it clear that despite the […]