KHANTY-MANSIISK, June 21 (RIA Novosti) - Salym Petroleum Development N.V. (SPD), half owned by Anglo-Dutch oil major Royal Dutch Shell, said Wednesday it plans to ramp up crude production to over 60,000 barrels per day by yearend.
SPD is a joint venture set up in 1996 to develop the Salym oilfields in Western Siberia. The company was established on a parity basis by Shell Salym Development B.V. and NK Evikhon, which is now owned by Anglo-Russian company Sibir Energy.
SPD has already increased oil production from 13,300 bbl/d in December 2005 to 50,000 bbl/d. Production so far in 2006 has reached 5 million barrels, the company said.
This year's production growth will come from the Vadelyp oil field in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Area, where extraction is set to begin in October, slightly ahead of schedule, the statement said. Investment in the project is planned at $249.2 mln.
The company's budget for this year is $410 mln.