Massive Offshore Rigs Enter Sea of Okhotsk (Russia)

Gazprom’s semi-submersible drilling rigs Polyarnaya Zvezda (Polar Star) and Severnoye Siyaniye (Northern Lights) left the Kholmsk Port on the Sakhalin Island last Thursday and entered the Sea of Okhotsk. The Kirinsky block of the Sakhalin shelf is their destination point.

The state-run Eastern Gas Program was approved by the September 2007 Order of the Russian Industry and Energy Ministry. Gazprom was appointed by the Russian Government as the Program execution coordinator.

Sakhalin shelf is one of the main sources of gas supplies to consumers of the Russian Far East. Gazprom holds licenses for three blocks within the Sakhalin III project: Kirinsky, Ayashsky and Vostochno-Odoptinsky as well as the Kirinskoye gas and condensate field.

The Kirinskoye gas and condensate field is located 28 kilometers off the Sakhalin Island shore in the Sea of Okhotsk (sea depth – 90 meters). The field was discovered in 1992. Geological exploration operations were completed at the field in 2011. All reserves are within the C1 category and total 162.5 billion cubic meters of gas and 19.1 million tons of gas condensate. The field will be brought into production in 2013.

In September 2010 Gazprom discovered the large Yuzhno-Kirinskoye gas and condensate field within the promising Kirinsky block. The C1+C2 reserves amount to 563.9 billion cubic meters of gas and 71.7 million tons of gas condensate.

In autumn 2011 Gazprom discovered another field within the Kirinsky block – Mynginskoye gas and condensate field. Its C1+C2 reserves total 19.8 billion cubic meters of gas and 2.5 million tons of gas condensate.

The Polyarnaya Zvezda and Severnoye Siyaniye semi-submerged drilling rigs were manufactured on Gazprom’s order by the Vyborg Shipbuilding Plant in 2011. The platforms are designed for operation under the Arctic conditions and can drill exploration and production wells down to 7,500 meters at water depths between 70 and 500 meters.