Eric Watkins
OGJ Oil Diplomacy Editor

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 18 -- Anglo-Russian oil joint venture TNK-BP Holding reported it has started commercial production at Urna and Ust-Tegus fields in the Uvat area of the Tyumen region in Siberia, feeding crude into the 264-km pipeline that connects the fields with the OAO Transneft pipeline system.

Urna and Ust-Tegus, which are located in the eastern part of Uvat, hold an estimated 300 million tonnes of oil in place, including 100 million tonnes of reserves. Plans call for the production of some 1.5 million tonnes of crude from the fields in 2009.

At the same time, TNK-BP expects to spend some $500 million on the Uvat project, including the drilling of development wells and construction of other necessary field facilities.

TNK-BP said it has invested $925 million in field development and construction at the fields.

In 2008, TNK-BP increased its oil production over 2007's by 2.6% to 601 million boe, according to the firm's chief executive officer Tim Summers. TNK-BP is 50% owned by BP PLC and 50% owned by Alfa Access Renova.

Contact Eric Watkins at hippalus@yahoo.com.