IRKUTSK DEVELOPMENT SEEN VIABLE

Western Siberia's plunging crude production apparently has made viable an eastern Siberian oil, gas, and condensate development program deemed uneconomical only a year ago. Irkutsk province, which currently has very little or no hydrocarbon production, plans to develop at least two big fields in its territory. They are Verkhnechonskoye oil field, discovered in 1978 with an estimated 600-650 million metric tons (4.38-4.75 billion bbl) of crude oil reserves, and Kovyktinskoye gas/condensate