Eric Watkins
Senior Correspondent
LOS ANGELES, June 27 -- ExxonMobil Corp. denied a report by Russia's Interfax news agency that oil exports from the Sakhalin-1 project might be delayed until October, saying they are on track to begin by August.
Interfax earlier quoted Lev Brodsky, an official from Russia's state-owned Rosneft—Exxon's partner in the 250,000 b/d project—as saying the exports could be delayed to October.
"In October we plan to launch exports from De-Kastri" port in Russia's Far Eastern Khabarovsk region, Interfax quoted Brodsky as saying, adding that Asia-Pacific will be the main market for the oil.
"The report is wrong," said ExxonMobil spokesman Bob Davis. "The first lifting from Sakhalin-1 will be in August on schedule."
ExxonMobil subsidiary ExxonNeftegaz Ltd. holds 30% interest in the Sakhalin-1 project; other consortium members are Japan's Sakhalin Oil & Gas Development Co. Ltd. 30%, India's ONGC Videsh Ltd. 20%, and Russian firms Sakhalinmorneftegas-Shelf 11.5% and RN-Astra 8.5%.
Contact Eric Watkins at [email protected].