OREANDA-NEWS. On 30 July 2008 was announced, that the Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology Yury Trutnev has signed an order of actualization of the long-term Russian mineral resources appraisal and rehabilitation program, according to the “Eastern oil pipeline” expert portal. Implementation of the program will speed up the mineral exploration and will promote to filling up of the “Eastern Siberia – Pacific Ocean” oil pipeline in proper time.

The program actualized by the Minister is scheduled up to 2020. Volume of investments into the oil and gas exploration is supposed to be increased under the document as well as a range of measures to be taken for resource provision to the large infrastructure projects in particular to the “Eastern Siberia – Pacific Ocean” oil transportation system. Implementation of the long-term program will allow to provide the expanded reproduction of the 37 kinds of mineral resources. The documents also include measures fir the accelerated development of the Siberia, Far East and other territories.

The total state investment into the geological exploration will be increased to 544 billion rubles according to the long-term program. At that the state costs for exploration of the Eastern Siberian province, including parametric and prospect drilling, should be increased from 80 to 129 billion rubles. Additional investments will allow to provide a timely filling of the ESPO and to recover the construction expenses. The Ministry of Natural Resources is convinced that the assets invested in exploration in the Eastern Siberia region will pay off at the stage of holding an auction for field development license.