Cablegate: Russian Energy: Update On Sakhalin-1 Operations

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OO RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
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DE RUEHMO #2458 3200527
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 160527Z NOV 06
FM AMEMBASSY MOSCOW
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5175
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHXD/MOSCOW POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS MOSCOW 012458

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DEPT FOR EUR/RUS WARLICK, HOLMAN, AND GUHA
DEPT FOR EB/ESC/IEC GALLOGLY AND GARVERICK
DOE FOR HARBERT/EKIMOFF/PISCITELLI
DOC FOR 4231/IEP/EUR/JBROUGHER
NSC FOR GRAHAM AND MCKIBBEN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EPET ENRG ECON PREL RS
SUBJECT: RUSSIAN ENERGY: UPDATE ON SAKHALIN-1 OPERATIONS

1. (SBU) In light of press reports indicating that the GOR
was slowing the Sakhalin-1 consortium's operations, we
contacted ExxonMobil's Sakhalin office to get an update.
According to Michael Allen, ExxonMobil's government relations
head on Sakhalin, as of November 16 the consortium had still
not received the necessary clearances from RosTekhNadzor (RTN
-- the Russian environmental, industrial, and nuclear safety
watchdog) that would allow for "full" operations at the
De-Kastri oil terminal. According to Allen, Sakhalin-1 is
exporting on a "trial" basis in the sense that they are not
yet producing -- and exporting -- the expected 250,000
barrels per day (b/d) from the terminal. Presently, they are
producing roughly 100,000 b/d, all of which is being loaded
on tankers and sent to global markets.

2. (SBU) Allen said that they are moving in the right
direction with RTN but describes the process as "start-stop."
He hopes that, once the consortium works through RTN's list
of uncompleted requirements later this year that RTN and the
Khabarovsk Kray government, where the oil terminal is
located, will go ahead and issue the "full facility operating
permit," paving the way for full production by the end of
this year or early 2007.
BURNS

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