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Navigation

• Chapter 1: Oil and gas resources on the Arctic Con
• 1.1. Russia’s oil and gas industry - a historical
• 1.2. Oil and gas raw material base on the Russia’s
• 1.3. Strategy for developing the oil and gas poten
• 1.4. Oil resources on Russia’s Euro-Arctic shelf
• 1.5. Gas resources on Russia’s Euro-Arctic shelf
• 1.6. Development of offshore oil and gas reserves
• 1.7. Subsoil regulation in Russia
• 1.8. Companies operating on the Arctic shelf
• Appendix I - I
• Appendix I - II
• Appendix I – III
• Appendix I – IV
• Appendix I - V
• Appendix I - VI
• Appendix I - VII
• Chapter 2: Transporting oil and gas in Northwest R
• 2.1. State regulations and strategies
• 2.2. Existing transport systems in Northwest Russi
• 2.3 Navigation
• 2.4. Future plans for oil and gas transport in Nor
• Chapter 3. Environmental risks when extracting an
• 3.1. Environmental risk when carrying out geologic
• 3.2. Environmental risks when exploiting oil and g
• 3.3. The Environmental risk when transporting oil
• 3.4. The state of the environment in the Pechora,
• Appendix III - I
• Appendix III - II
• Chapter 4. Oil and gas accidents – prevention and
• 4.1. Accidents and incidents: causes and consequen
• 4.2. Oil spill classification and responsibilities
• 4.3. Drafting plans for eliminating accidental oil
• 4.4. Eliminating spills
• 4.5 The Barents Sea’s Emergency Rescue Organizatio
• 4.6. Assessing damage and fines
• 4.7. The role of public organisations
• Appendix IV - I
• Appendix IV - II
• Appendix IV - III
• Chapter 5. Environmental impact of oil and gas ac
• 5.1. The Barents Sea
• 5.2. Environmental impact of oil and petroleum pro
• 5.3. The key areas for preserving bioresources in
• Appendix V - I
• Appendix V - II
• Appendix V - III
• Conclusion
• Appendix VI. The future of the northern regions

Appendix I – III

The classification of hydrocarbon reserves

In Russia, the “Classification of field reserves, prospective and predicted oil and combustible gas resources”, was affirmed by Resolution No. 299 of the Council of Ministers of the USSR dated April 8, 1983. In 2004, a new classification for reserves was drawn up. At the heart of the new Russian classification is the old framework classification adopted by the UN in March 1997 (UN Framework Classification or UNFC), which is based on indices of the economic efficiency of development, the degree of industrial development and the level of previous geological study. While the recalculation of all the oil and gas reserves according to the new classification system is not yet complete, according to prognoses by experts from the All-Russian Scientific Research, Geological and Petroleum Institute, and the Ministry of Natural Resources, it will be finished in the near future.

This classification lays down the unified principles for computation and the State calculation of field reserves and prospective oil and combustible gas reserves according to the results of geological exploration work and field development.

Data pertaining to field reserves and areas with future prospects is used for the following: drawing up development charts and arranging sectors of the national economy; compiling State plans concerned with economic and social development; planning geological exploration work; and designing plans for extracting, transporting and integrated processing of oil and gas. Data regarding long-term oil and gas resources is used when planning exploration and surveying work.

The new Russian classification based on previous geological study and degree of industrial development determines the categories of reserves and resources, while groups of reserves and resources are allocated on the basis of the level of economic efficiency (fig. 3).

There is no arrow to C2 above!

New classification of hydrocarbon reserves

Reserves are divided up between authentic (category А), established (category В), estimated (category С₁) and proposed sources (category С₂). Resources are subdivided between localised (category D₁), prospective (category D₂) and predicted sources (category D₃). Ultimate potential reserves and resources and current potential reserves and resources are also subdivided. Specific economic indices which characterise the efficiency with which monetary funds are utilised represent the criteria whereby reserves are divided into groups (commercially significant, provisionally profitable and unprofitable). Recoverable resources, in turn, are classified according to profitable and indeterminately profitable. Commercially significant reserves are subdivided according to reserves which are profitable under normal circumstances and those which are provisionally profitable.

The new system introduces, for the first time, the concept of economic profitability of production which completely changes the notion of recoverability, transferring it from the technological sphere to that of economic expediency.