Russian oil giant and Exxon Mobil plan joint project in Alberta

The Russian oil company Rosneft and the U.S. based global giant Exxon Mobil are teaming up in a joint venture that will involve an oil project in Alberta. However the project will also involve oil exploration and production in Russia as well.

A Rosneft subsidiary RN Cardium Oil will gain a 30 per cent share in the Harmattan acreage in Alberta. The National Energy Board of Canada estimates the formation of which the acreage is part contains about 10.6 billion barrels of oil. The problem is the oil is in very dense rock. However, new technologies may be able to release the oil.

Rosneft hopes that the Alberta investment may eventually help it develop similar unconventional oil reservoirs in Russia as well. Exxon gains from the project since it will gain access to the Russian Arctic and Black Sea. Three key Arctic fields in Russia are thought to contain up to 85 billion barrels of oil equivalent. Russia will take advantage of Exxon's experience and technology in Arctic drilling. For more see this article. Many environmentalists are concerned about drilling for oil in the Arctic.