A SOURCE FOR THE NEW CENTURY

Two schools - One Goal

Alexey Kontorovich,
academician of the Russian Academy of Science,
director of the Institute of Oil and Gas Geological Exploration
(Siberian department of the Russian Academy of Science)

        More than 150 years ago, in the first half of the XVIII century, Michail Lomonosov wrote, "Russia's power will be increased by Siberia and Arctic Ocean" in order to motivate the necessity of development of the Northern Sea Route by Russia. His words turned out to be right. Russia's northern territories and waters are exceptionally rich in mineral products. The largest gas fields in the north of Western Siberia are situated in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Area and the south part of the Kara Sea. They contain almost 120 billion cubic metres of gas. Such unique gas fields as Urengoiskoye, Yamburgskoye, Zapoliarnoye, Medvezhye, Bovanenkovskoye and other ones have been discovered there. Several wells have been drilled on the Kara Sea shelf and two outstanding discoveries have been made - the new gigantic gas fields, Rusanovskoye and Leningradskoye, have been found. Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Area provides more than 95 percent of Russian gas, as well as every third cubic metre of gas extracted in the world! Yamalo-Nenets Area is also rich in oil. Among Russia's northern regions, its resources and output in that region give way to Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Area only. Today and for several future decades, this Area is to be the main oil base of Russia. According to estimates made by the scientists of the Siberian department of the Russian Academy of Science, oil production in the northern regions of Western Siberia must make 205 - 210 mln tons in 2000 and may be brought to 250 - 270 mln tons by 2030. Production of gas will make 540 - 550 billion of cubic metres in 2000 and may be brought to 630 - 640 billion of cubic metres by 2030.
        Resources of the Russian North are not limited to the territory of Western Siberia. Substantial supplies of oil and gas have been found in Russia's North-European part, Republic of Komi, and the Arkhangelsk Region. But the main discovery pertains to the Barents Sea where the unique Stockmanovskoye gas field has been found. Gas production may be estimated at 80 - 100 billion of cubic metres.
        Russia's eastern regions - Krasnoyarsk Territory, Irkutsk Region and Yakutia - are also rich in oil and gas. The production of gas in these regions may both meet the needs of Russia's eastern regions for oil and gas and guarantee a significant part of export volume for the Asian-and-Pacific market of power resources. During the first decades of the XXI century, three new transport routes for oil and gas delivery need to be created: the first one - from Eastern Siberia through Transbaikalia to North-East and Eastern China, the second one - from the northern part of Western Siberia through the Tomsk Region, the Novosibirsk Region, Altai Territory, Republic of Altai, and China's Northwest to China's South-East (Shanghai), and the third one - along the Northern Sea Route. This last route may be used for the deliveries of oil and liquid gas to the Asian-and-Pacific market of power resources. The plants for the production of liquid gas may be built in Harasaway, Yamburg, and Dudinka. It is necessary to develop gas industry in Tobolsk, Tomsk and Angarsk by means of gas production in Western and Eastern Siberia. We must improve oil refining in Omsk, Achinsk and Angarsk to meet the need for motor fuel using less oil.
        It is important to bear in mind that gas in East-Siberian and Yakut gas fields contains a lot of helium. Helium is indispensable for space exploration, atomic power engineering, medicine, and new high energy-saving technologies. At present, the USA is the main supplier of helium to the world market. But in accordance with American forecasts, the need for helium in the world will grow quickly during the nearest 10 - 15 years, and the production of helium in USA will fall. In the first decades of the XXI century, Russia may create in Eastern Siberia the greatest world centre for extraction and processing of helium and become the greatest world manufacturer and exporter of helium. Helium will be also necessary for Russia's economy and power engineering,that are being revived and reformed at the present time.
        North of Siberia is rich not only in oil and gas. Diamond fields were found inYakutia and, some time later, in Arkhangelsk Region. The deposits of Norilsk mining centre contain great supplies of copper, nickel and platinum. Big gold deposits are situated in Krasnoyarsk Territory, Irkutsk Region, and Chukchi Peninsula.
        I'm especially pleased to report that St. Petersburg and Siberian geological scientific schools have made a valuable contribution to the exploration of oil and gas fields of the northern part of Siberia and the Arctic. The Scientific school of the All-Union Research Institute of Oceanography (formerly NIIGA) is working already for many decades with great success. One of the school's leaders during the 1940-s - 1960-s, V.N. Saks, corresponding member of the Academy of Science of the USSR, was the first during the war to substantiate the necessity of the prospecting of hydrocarbons in the lower parts of Nadym, Taz and Pur rivers. All the largest gas fields were discovered there. At present this scientific school is headed by the outstanding Russian scientist - academician I.S.Gramberg. His Institute made a great contribution to the development of the whole complex of mineral resources of the Russian Arctic. Furthermore I.S. Gramberg and V.N. Saks contributed greatly to the exploration of mineral resources of the Russian North aided by D.A. Dodin and Y.E. Pogrebitskii, fellow members of the Russian Academy of Science.
        A famous geologist and specialist in oil professor N.N. Rostovtsev, Lenin prize-winner, who worked at the All-Union Geological Institute at the end of 1940-s - beginning of 1950-s, founded the Tyumen geological scientific school and was the first to discover the West-Siberian oil and gas region. In those early years, he was the first after I.M. Gubkin to demonstrate the great prospects for this unique oil and gas region of our country. Headed by academician A.D. Scheglov and corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Science L.I. Krasnyi, scientists of this Institute made a lot for the development of mineral resources of Eastern Siberia and Russia's North-East.
        The development of oil and gas resources of northern parts of Western and Eastern Siberia was significantly advanced by the VNIGRI scientific staff, headed by the corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Science V.D. Nalivkin, professors N.G. Chochia, V.V. Samsonov, G.P. Sverchkov, V.V. Zabaluev and others.
        Open mineral deposits are just a part of the potential of Russia's northern regions and water areas. To find new mineral deposits and provide their long-term and stable development we need to carry out geological prospecting. But unfortunately, the unfortunate shortfalls of the last decade resulted in an almost complete shutdown of the research into geological prospecting in Russia's North. New deposits are being slowly developed, e.g. the gas fields in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Area.
        Having enormous mineral resources, we can at the same time come to a significant drop in the production of gas. We must bear in mind that we shall never have gas as cheap as that which Russia produced in the last ten years. We need substantial investments to develop new oil and gas centres. We are sure that the country's oil and gas complex is able to finance itself independently, and this is the end which must be achieved. In order to reach this goal, a radical tax reform is necessary, as well as revision of prices in the fuel and power industry. We need to have a special federal programme on the development of the northern regions and water areas. The Siberian department of the Russian Academy of Science has often expressed its readiness to actively participate in the development of such a programme.