Foreign Companies To Be Allowed to Buy Russian Deposits

The subsidiaries of foreign companies, registered in Russia, will be allowed to take part in open auctions for 40 deposits in East Siberia in 2006. It was announced by Anatoliy Temkin, the Russian Federation's deputy natural resources minister.

Although these 40 fields fall into the category of minor deposits, Temkin added, it cannot be ruled out that "significant hydrocarbon reserves" could be discovered as these deposits are explored.

It has already been reported that 40 blocks in East Siberia are to be auctioned off by the Russian Natural Resources Ministry in 2006. Their total reserves are 24m tons of oil and 141bn cubic metres of gas. These deposits' oil resources.