Russian major Lukoil, the country’s largest privately owned company, has signalled interest in purchasing compatriots Bashneft, which might come on the market as part of President Vladimir Putin’s privatization effort, Reuters reported on Friday.

Lukoil sees drop in full-year profit

MOSCOW, April 4, 2016 – Lukoil reported a 26% drop in full-year income on Monday. Russia’s second-largest producer earned a net income of around USD 4.3 billion in 2015, down from USD 5.8 billion the year before.

Lukoil’s hydrocarbons production in 2015 came out at 2.38 million boepd, a 2.8% increase over 2014. Oil accounted for 2.05 million bopd last year, with gas production totalling 327 bcm (11.6 tcf). Sales where also up, reaching almost USD 79 billion over 2015.

In related news, Lukoil on Saturday began exploration drilling work in Iraq’s block 10, having wrapped up a 2D-seismic campaign in February 2015. Completed four months ahead of schedule, the project saw Chinese geophysical services contractor BGP acquire 2,022 km of 2D-seismic data. Lukoil is developing the block with Japan’s Inpex Corporation under a technical services contract with shares of 60 percent and 40 percent, respectively.

In an October 2015 interview with TOGY, Lukoil seismic operational manager Igor Kosmynin said the company considers discoveries in Block 10 “highly probable.” The contract area is in proximity to the Nasiriyah field, home to more than 4 billion barrels of oil reserves. As such, Kosmynin assumes the existence of stratigraphic and anticline traps. “The Mishrif and Yamama reservoirs are believed to be the primary reservoirs in Block 10, with Zubair and Ratawi understood to be secondary reservoirs,” he said.

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