Norwegian operator
Statoil ASA
(
STO
) is reported to have pulled out of the Shtokman shareholder
agreement and officially relinquished its stake in the stalled
Russian project. Statoil has written off an amount of NOK 2 billion
($336.2 million) relating to its investment in the Shtokman gas
field.
Shtokman field - one of the world's largest gas field - is situated
in the glacial and turbulent waters of the Arctic Barents Sea and
is estimated to hold reserves of about 4 trillion cubic meters.
The consortium responsible for the development of the field
included Russian gas giant Gazprom, holding 51% and
Total S.A.
(
TOT
) holding 25%. The remaining 24% was held by Statoil. The partners
failed to arrive at agreeable commercial terms and conditions for
an investment involving about $15 billion for the initial stage.
Even the development solution for the field was not amenable.
Statoil formally exited from the project when the agreement expired
on June 30. The discussions between the parties are still on and
Statoil intends to proceed with the project if it is profitable.
Per the sources, it has been revealed that
Royal Dutch Shell plc
(
RDS.A
) is also pondering over joining the venture as a third partner and
swapping its place with one of the smaller shareholders. Royal
Dutch Shell, being a large company, has a likely greater potential
to control projects with high-volume and low margin over a longer
term.
Over the last 15 months, Statoil has made a string of discoveries,
comprising the King Lear discovery, and those at Tanzania (Lavani
well and Zafarani), North Sea (Johan Sverdrup), the Barents Sea
(Skrugard and Havis) and Brazil (Peregrino South and Pão de
Açúcar). This goes to show the company's steady focus on achieving
success in high impact prospects and expanding its operations
worldwide. With such a huge range of international projects,
Statoil is skeptical about investing in any other new project.
Statoil holds a Zacks #1 Rank (short-term Strong Buy rating).
ROYAL DTCH SH-A (RDS.A): Free Stock Analysis
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