On June 30, RN-Sakhalinmorneftegaz LLC launched a booster compressor station (BCS) and gas treatment facilities at the Odoptu-More deposit.

The launch of the BCS will boost associated petroleum gas (APG) utilization at the Odoptu-More deposit and generally across Sakhalinmorneftegaz to 95% from July 2011.

Gas is delivered through the Odoptu-More – Tungor field pipeline to the gas supply system of the north of the Sakhalin region.

Work was performed as part of Rosneft's targeted gas program. The total cost of work, including the construction of field pipelines, was more than 2.3 billion rubles.

OJSC Rosneft President Eduard Khudainatov noted: “The aim of the company's gas program is not just to increase APG utilization to 95% but also to ensure the maximum economic effect for our shareholders by using APG to generate electricity and providing it to the gas grid to meet domestic demands, as well as processing it for re-injection into oil reservoirs to maintain reservoir pressure.”

As part of the targeted gas program, which anticipates an APG utilization rate of 95%, over 1,000km of gas pipelines will be constructed by 2014, along with compressor stations at the Komsomolskoye, Kharampurskoye, Priobskoye, Vankorskoye and other fields. Total investments in the gas program, which has been running since 2006, will reach 120 billion rubles. In 2010, an APG-powered power complex was launched at the Priobskoye field. The complex includes a gas preparation facility and a 180 MWt gas turbine electric power station. The company is currently constructing a gas pipeline between the Vankorskoye and Khalmerpayutinskoye fields in a joint project with Lukoil to transport associated petroleum gas to Gazprom's system.

Increasing the value of Rosneft's gas business is a very important aspect of its strategic development. The company is well positioned to capitalize on this opportunity thanks to its significant gas reserves of 3.2 trillion cubic meters of gas under the Russian calculation system.