MOSCOW, March 24 (UPI) -- Anglo-Russian venture TNK-BP intends to sell off shares of a Siberian gas field to state-run energy giant Rosneft by the end of the year, shareholders said.
TNK-BP under the terms of the license agreement for the Kovykta gas field in Siberia is required to produce more than 300 billion cubic feet of natural gas per year. Yury Trutnev, the Russian natural resources minister, complained earlier this year that TNK-BP was short of its production target.
Viktor Vekselberg, a Russian shareholder in TNK-BP, said the company plans to sell its majority stake in the gas field to Rosneftegaz, a Rosneft subsidiary, for more than $700 million, Russia's state-run news agency RIA Novosti reports.
"We are discussing the issue with Rosneftegaz, and normal constructive work is under way," he said.
Moscow had warned TNK-BP that it could lose its license to operate the field if its production goals weren't met.
"No extreme measures will be taken because general tension must be eased," added Vekselberg.
The gas field in the Irkutsk region of eastern Siberia holds more than 70 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
