Russia's LUKoil finds 100 mln bbl of oil reserves in Colombia

MOSCOW, February 7 (RIA Novosti) - LUKoil Overseas, a subsidiary of Russia's largest oil company LUKoil [RTS: LKOH], said Wednesday it had discovered oil reserves in excess of 100 million barrels in Colombia.

The oil was found through the Condor project, in the foothills of Eastern Cordillera, in the western part of the Llanos oil basin. This is the first discovery by Russian producers in the western hemisphere, the company's news release said.

A contract on the Condor block was signed between LUKoil Overseas and the Colombian national oil company Ecopetrol on April 7, 2002. The document includes exploration activities at the block for six years and the development of the field for 22 years in the case of a commercial discovery, the news release said.

LUKoil Overseas has a 70% share in the project while Ecopetrol holds 30%. The project operator is LUKoil Overseas Colombia Ltd.

LUKoil is currently preparing the deposit for commercial development, the news release said.