Rosneft announced on October 18, 2017, that it had signed production sharing agreements for 5 oil blocks in the Kurdistan Region.
In a statement, Rosneft said it would pay up to $400 million for 80 % in the venture as part of the deal with the Kurdish Autonomous Region of Iraq, although up to half the sum could be paid in crude oil from the blocks.
A joint exploration programme and pilot production is to start next year.
If successful, Rosneft said it would start full-field development of the blocks in 2021.
Recoverable oil reserves at the 5 blocks are around 670 million barrels, Rosneft said, calling the estimate «conservative» .
Rosneft and Kurdistan are already cooperating on crude purchases and sales, but the new deal «will allow us to talk about full-fledged entry of the company in one of the most promising regions of the developing global power market», the company said.
Rosneft previously has loaned $1.2 bln to the Kurdish government guaranteed by oil sales and is seeking to help build 2 major oil and gas pipelines as part of President Putin’s drive to increase influence in the Middle East.
