Russia mulls fiscal changes to boost less-advantaged oil
Last year saw reserve replacement at over 100pc. But there are concerns this is unsustainable without better incentives
The Russian government is discussing options with its largest oil producers to amend the country’s fiscal system to stimulate development of fields with difficult geology and those with heavy crude output. These more challenging deposits are viewed as key to supporting oil reserve replacement as ageing existing sites face decline over the next decades. Russia government officials reported in December that growth in crude and condensate reserves in 2021 was more than 628mn t. The increase was largely achieved through additional appraisal work over the last 12 months on existing producing fields. With overall production levels in 2021 estimated at 517mn t, Russia has achieved reserve replaceme

Also in this section
11 July 2025
Equinor and its partners at Norway’s largest oilfield have pulled the trigger on a fresh $1.3b investment that will maintain high output for longer
11 July 2025
Reassessment of the country’s export-facing gas policy coincides with worsening domestic market backdrop
10 July 2025
Without sanctions relief, there is little reason to believe the latest potential attempt at exports from the Russian liquefaction project will be more successful than the one last summer
9 July 2025
Efforts to restructure and boost investment appear to be working, but doubts remain about the plan to almost double crude production by 2030