Russia's largest oil company Rosneft will invest some $400 billion into projects in the Arctic by 2030, according to the company's head.
In an interview published in Germany's "Der Spiegel" magazine on August 31, Rosneft chief Igor Sechin spoke highly of the potential for drilling sites in the Kara Sea.
"We expect to open a new oil province there, with reserves comparable to proven reserves of Saudi Arabia," Sechin said.
Sechin noted Rosneft was working with U.S. company ExxonMobil in the Kara Sea project and added the American company had been a reliable partner in projects with Rosneft for some 20 years already.
Drilling at the site started on August 9 after a ceremony on a drilling rig in the Kara Sea in which Russian President Vladimir Putin participated via video link.
