MOSCOW (Dow Jones)--Russian Natural Resources Minister Yury Trutnev Monday accused the country's gas monopoly OAO Gazprom (GAZP.RS) and TNK-BP Holding (TNBP.RS) for not presenting the terms of the Kovykta gas field exploration.
The companies, who own the production license, had to announce the date of the start of full production at Kovykta by the end of the year, but have failed to do so, the minister said.
"We don't agree with the old timeline, but didn't get the new one," Trutnev said.
Trutnev said it's not clear now who is responsible for the production at Kovykta and whom the state should talk to.
In June, TNK-BP signed a preliminary agreement to sell its 62.8% stake in the Kovykta gas project to Gazprom. But the deadline for the finalization of the deal has slipped from Dec. 1 to the first quarter of 2008.