Gazprom Neft takes 1 millionth barrel from arctic field

MOSCOW, Sept. 15 (UPI) —

Russian oil company Gazprom Neft said Monday it reached a milestone with the production of its 1 millionth barrel of oil from the arctic Prirazlomnoye field.

Gazprom Neft Board Chairman Alexander Dyukov said his is the first Russian company to pull oil from the Russian arctic shelf.

"The production of the millionth barrel of oil at the Prirazlomnoye field is a milestone and further proof of the consistent development of the project and its final transition into full-scale development," he said in a statement. "Gazprom Neft plays a leading role in developing oil deposits on the Arctic shelf and we can build on this experience for new Arctic projects in the future."

The company expects 2.2 million barrels worth of production from Prirazlomnoye during the first full year of development. A tanker with 1 million barrels worth of storage capacity is set to leave the field for Europe "in the next few days."

Last year, Greenpeace advocates later dubbed the Arctic 30 scaled a rig set for work in the arctic field to raise awareness about the risks of an oil spill in the harsh northern environment.

Gazprom Neft said a stationary rig at the site is designed specifically to ensure the risks of a spill are minimized to the greatest extent possible.