Moscow, April 5, 2004 – YUKOS Oil Company, Open Joint Stock Company “Surgutneftegas” and the government of the Sakha Republic signed yesterday an agreement to settle the issues concerning the development of the Talakanskoe field. Under the agreement, Open Joint Stock Company “Sakhaneftegas” will sell to Surgutneftegas the assets of the Talakanskoe field, including Open Joint Stock Company “Lenaneftegas”.

“Yakutia welcomes the agreement between YUKOS Oil Co. and Surgutneftegas that is of great importance for the people of the Sakha Republic,” stated Vyacheslav Shtyrov, the President of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic. “The agreement that will enjoy our full support demonstrates a high level of social responsibility of the two companies and their commitment to the civilized business practices.”

“The agreement we have reached will allow Surgutneftegas to commence in the near future full-scale operations in the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic, which serves the interests of both the Republic and our company,” said Vladimir Bogdanov, Director General of OJSC “Surgutneftegas”. “We have come to Eastern Siberia with serious intentions and for long.”

“We are satisfied with the fact that the agreement fully reflects the interests of the parties involved: the government of the Sakha Republic, the former field operator and the new one,” emphasized Simon Kukes, YUKOS CEO. “As before, we regard Yakutia as a priority area for our operations.”

Pursuant to the agreement, Surgutneftegas and Lenaneftegas will conclude various contracts whereby Lenaneftegas will be providing field-operating services to Surgutneftegas. In particular, the services will include drilling and oil production in the Talakanskoe field.

Forward-looking statement

Certain information in this press release may contain projections or other forward-looking statements regarding future events or future financial performance of the companies. Readers should bear in mind that these statements do not guarantee projected results or events related to the companies’ activities and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that the companies cannot predict accurately. Therefore, actual results and future performance of the companies may differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements. The companies disclaim, however, any intent to update any forward-looking statements to conform with actual results.

YUKOS Oil Company Press Service
Surgutneftegas Press Service