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Lukoil opens office in Norway

Oil company Lukoil

The first Russian oil company pre-qualified for operations on the Norwegian shelf is opening an office in Norway.

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According to Russian media, Leonid Surguchev has been appointed leader of the new office. Surguchev has lived in Norway since 1998 and worked in the Petec company and the IRIS research institute, Rusenergy reports.

As previously reported, Norway’s Ministry of Petroleum and Energy in August 2011 approved LUKoil’s pre-qualification for operations on the Norwegian shelf. LUKoil is Russia’s largest private oil company and the first to be pre-qualified for operations in Norway.

Read also: LUKoil wants to team with Statoil on Norwegian shelf

The Lukoil management has admitted that the Russian-Norwegian border delineation agreement for the Barents Sea, which was ratified in 2011, is a key reason why the company is attracted to Norway.

- It made everyone excited, said LUKoil’s a spokesman Grigory Volchek to The Moscow Times. - If there is a definite borderline, some work can be planned for that area.

Read also: Border agreement sparked Lukoil’s interest