OAO Lukoil Holdings (LKOH.RS),
Russia
's
second-largest oil producer, has proposed investing $2.7 billion in geological
survey work on
Russia
's
Arctic shelf, Interfax cited a company spokesman as saying Thursday.
The company sent applications to the government at the start of October
expressing readiness to carry out surveys at four license sectors in the
Laptev, East Siberian and
Chukchi
Seas
,
Intefax reported.
Under current legislation, only two state-controlled companies--OAO Rosneft
(ROSN.RS) and Gazprom (GAZP.RS)--are allowed to own offshore licenses and other
companies can enter projects as partners with them. Lukoil and other non-state
companies have petitioned the government for access to offshore deposits.
The
government is currently reworking its shelf-development program.