Russia's Rosneft Trying to Sell Shares in Algerian Gas, Oil Project - Reports

Russian oil giant Rosneft is trying to sell shares of its oil and gas development project in Algeria, after it turned out to be not profitable, Kommersant newspaper reported Monday, citing sources in the industry.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Rosneft is seeking to sell its share in the project concerning the development of the 245-South Block including the West- and East-Takuazet oil fields and the North-Tesselit gas condensate field.

The newspaper added that Rosneft could not simply leave Algeria, since there would be high fees and forfeits, and that is why the company is trying to sell the project. Rosneft had reportedly offered a deal to Gazprom, but the energy giant refused to buy the share.

Now Rosneft is likely to attempt to sell the shares to Algeria's oil and gas company Sonatrach.

The development of the 245-South Block was launched in 2001 when Rosneft and Sonatrach signed a deal on exploration of the fields in the area. After the oil prices fell dramatically in 2014, Rosneft started seeing the project as unproductive.