Russian SIBUR, TNK-BP sign strategic partnership deals on refining

SIBUR and TNK-BP signed contracts extending cooperation on Yugragazpererabotka, which processes associated gas, to 2026, the joint statement said.

The JV, founded in 2007, includes the Nizhnevartovsky and Belozerny gas processing plants and the company Nyagangaspererabotka, as well as pipeline infrastructure in the West Siberian region of Khanty-Mansiisk.

TNK-BP's executive director German Khan said the joint venture has already enabled the company to increase volumes of associated gas used.

‘‘Our partnership with SIBUR plays an important role in solving our high-priority task of increasing the use of this raw material to 95% by 2015,’‘ Khan said, according to the statement.

SIBUR owns a 51% stake in the refiner, and TNK-BP the remaining 49%. Production volumes are currently split between the two owners in line with the size of their stakes.

The two companies also agreed the acquisition by SIBUR of a 25% stake in the Zaikinsky gas processing facility, in the Orenburg region to be finalized in 2013.

TNK-BP is currently expanding capacity at Zaikinsky by constructing a second phase of gas processing facilities and a loading center at the Tyulpan railway station, as well as gas fractioning installations and complex gas preparation units at the Pokrovsk compressor station, the statement said. ‘‘The large-scale gas-refining projects in the Orenburg region and the development of the Rospan assets will open up new opportunities for our joint business, and will efficiently solve the problems of properly using associated gas not only in West Siberia, but also in other oil-producing regions of the country,’‘ Khan said.

SIBUR's key shareholder Leonid Mikhelson and Khan signed the agreements, alongside chairman of SIBUR's management board Dmitry Konov, the statement said. The two companies are also negotiating on the possible purchase by SIBUR of LPG produced at TNK-BP's Rospan project, the statement said.

Rospan is the key project in TNK-BP's gas development strategy, launched last September.

Plans to launch full-field development at Rospan stalled Friday, however, when directors from UK-based partner BP failed to agree to expansion plans raised by the management and backed by Russian partner AAR.

Full-field development would allow the extraction of 273 billion cubic meters of gas, 50 million mt of condensate, 13 million mt of liquefied petroleum gas and 6 million mt of crude, TNK-BP said previously.