Russian gas monopoly Gazprom has added more than 500 billion cubic metres of confirmed gas reserves in the Kara Sea following exploration drilling efforts last year on the Rusanovsky and Nyarmeysky blocks in the north-west of West Siberia's Yamal Peninsula.

The company said a larger field named after former Soviet oil and gas minister Vasily Dinkov and located within the Rusanovsky block holds about 391 Bcm of gas reserves.

The amount of reserves has been estimated following the testing of an exploration well that was spudded last year and interpretation of existing 3D seismic data.

The Rusanovsky block already contains a field of the same name, which was tapped by two exploration wells in 1992, with reserves estimated at 780 Bcm of gas.

Meanwhile, a discovery at the Nyarmeyskoye field on the block with the same name has been estimated to hold about 121 Bcm of gas reserves.

Gazprom gained exploration and development licences for both blocks from the government in 2013, and before drilling two wells last year had reportedly gathered a total of almost 5800 square kilometres of 3D seismic data.

According to industry analysts in Moscow, prospects of commercial development of the two fields will depend upon the ability of Gazprom’s subsidiary, Gazpromgeologorazvedka, to identify additional hydrocarbon structures at the two blocks, where further exploration efforts are planned.

An additional factor may be the pace of development of Gazprom’s onshore gas fields in the western part of Yamal Peninsula.

Gazprom is expected to transport gas production from the Rusanovsky and Nyarmeysky blocks onshore, where it can be pumped into a gas trunkline built to reach the Bovanenkovo field, Gazprom’s largest asset on the peninsula.

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Gazprom drilling ups gas reserves at Kara Sea duo