Rustam Minnikhanov: super viscous and light oil are main resources that will help to increase oil production in Tatarstan

On September 2, at a plenary session of International research and practice conference “Specific Features of Exploration and Development of Unconventional Hydrocarbon Deposits” that was held during Tatarstan Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Forum in Kazan, Interim President of the Republic of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov said that super viscous and light oil are main resources that will help to increase oil production in Tatarstan.

He noted that geologists and oil industry workers of the republic are now facing the task to gain experience and master technologies that will ensure competitiveness of the republic’s oil industry in the next 30-50 years. This is an urgent problem of the whole Russian oil industry, he added.

“There is a decline in oil production in Russia. The quality of remaining reserves has become worse. The depletion of oil reserves in regions will lead to development of raw materials base in new regions of Eastern Siberia on the Arctic shelf, which requires massive efforts on infrastructural support and investments,” Rustam Minnikhanov said. However, the potential of oil production in traditional oil-producing regions is not fully revealed yet.

Minnikhanov reminded that Tatarstan oil industry workers were the first to face problems of development of hard to recover reserves. Currently, the share of these reserves in the republic makes 75 per cent. Moreover, Tatneft Oil Company is implementing the programme on the development of light oil fields.

Tatarstan and Russian Ministry of natural resources and ecology signed an agreement on creation of two test sites for developing hard to recover and unconventional hydrocarbon deposits.