Gazprom Neft the oil arm of Russian energy company Gazprom , is to take a 30 percent stake in a Cuban oil project, owned by Malaysia's Petronas's, to explore and develop four blocks in the Gulf of Mexico.
Gazprom Neft said on Tuesday its financial contribution to the project would be proportional to its 30 percent share, but gave no further details. It will also contribute towards costs Petronas has incurred to date.
Cuba estimates it has 20 billion barrels of oil in its section of the Gulf of Mexico that abuts the oil-rich U.S. and Mexican zones.
Cuba's portion of the Gulf of Mexico has been divided into 59 blocks, of which 21 have been contracted out to companies including Spanish oil giant Repsol and its partners, Malaysia's Petronas, Brazil's Petrobras, Venezuela's PDVSA and PetroVietnam.
Gazprom Neft, Russia's fifth largest oil producer, is seeking to raise crude output to 100 million tonnes per year by 2020, from around 70 million presently.
In addition to the Cuba project, Gazprom Neft is also exploring and producing oil in Equatorial Guinea, Iran and Venezuela.
Petronas, Malaysia's state oil company, is looking to focus on domestic projects and trim stakes in certain oversees operations.
In September, for example, Petronas sold its 5 percent stake in an Australian liquefied natural gas project to French group Total.
There have been reports it will also divest its 14.5 percent share in Cairn India Ltd
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