On May 10, Rosneft said it began operational drilling at the Lebedinskaya oil and gas condensate field in the Sea of Okhotsk. A horizontal extended-reach well will be drilled under the bottom of the Sea of Okhotsk.

Rosneft said that a total of three horizontal production wells between 5,000 kilometers (km) and 7,000 km long will be drilled. During the well construction, latest technologies will be used, particularly the real-time reservoir mapping technology to ensure optimum entry into the formation.

Lebedinskaya is located on the Northeastern Shelf of the Sea of Okhotsk in Okhinsky District in the Sakhalin Region. The field produces crude oil that is close to the Sokol grade, Rosneft said.

At the field, two prospecting and appraisal wells were previously drilled, and one of them was put on pilot production.

Drilling operations will be performed by drilling contractor RN-Burenie for RN-Sakhalinmorneftegaz, a Rosneft subsidiary. RN-Sakhalinmorneftegaz’s infrastructure will be used in the field’s development, Rosneft said.

The first oil from the new wells is expected in the current year.