Moscow (Platts)--23Nov2012/751 am EST/1251 GMT
Russia's largest crude producer Rosneft and Norway's Statoil have signed a declaration on protecting the environment and biodiversity of Russia's offshore zone during oil and gas exploration and development, the companies said Friday in separate statements. Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin and his Statoil counterpart Helge Lund signed the declaration which reaffirms the companies' "commitment to sustainable development, including minimizing the impact of oil and gas activities on indigenous populations and climate change," the statements said. The companies have agreed to observe the Convention on Biological Diversity and standards set by the IPIECA, the global oil and gas industry association for environmental and social issues. The declaration also supports regular monitoring of changes to the natural landscape and seas of the Arctic, as well as international cooperation as part of the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS). Article continues below...Request a free trial of: Oilgram NewsOilgram News brings fast-breaking global petroleum and gas news to your desktop every day. Our extensive global network of correspondents report on supply and demand trends, corporate news, government actions, exploration, technology, and much more.
Russia's largest crude producer Rosneft and Norway's Statoil have signed a declaration on protecting the environment and biodiversity of Russia's offshore zone during oil and gas exploration and development, the companies said Friday in separate statements. Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin and his Statoil counterpart Helge Lund signed the declaration which reaffirms the companies' "commitment to sustainable development, including minimizing the impact of oil and gas activities on indigenous populations and climate change," the statements said. The companies have agreed to observe the Convention on Biological Diversity and standards set by the IPIECA, the global oil and gas industry association for environmental and social issues. The declaration also supports regular monitoring of changes to the natural landscape and seas of the Arctic, as well as international cooperation as part of the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS).
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Sechin said environmental protection issues are top of the company's agenda, particularly concerning development of the Russian Arctic, according to the statements. "We intend to sign this declaration with all our partners before we launch any substantial activity in the Arctic to make sure everyone is governed by the same principles," Sechin said. Lund said Statoil endorsed Rosneft's initiative on the declaration, which "which reflects Statoil's values and our commitment to safeguarding health, safety and the environment in our operations on a daily basis," the statements said. Rosneft is planning to sign bilateral cooperation agreements with Russian government agencies including the federal space agency Roskosmos, the transport ministry and EMERCOM, Russia's ministry for civil defense, emergencies and response to natural disasters, to implement the declaration, the company said.--Rosemary Griffin, rosemary_griffin@platts.com--Edited by Jeremy Lovell, jeremy_lovell@platts.com
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