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Rosneft Ships First Crude From $157 Billion Vostok Oil Project

By Irina Slav - Sep 07, 2026

- Rosneft has shipped the first crude from its massive Vostok Oil project, despite Western sanctions and the departure of foreign partners.

- Vostok holds around 7 billion tons of low-sulfur crude, with production ultimately targeted at up to 2 million bpd.

- The project reinforces Russia’s energy pivot toward Asia and the Arctic, with the Northern Sea Route becoming increasingly important for future exports.


Rosneft has shipped the first crude oil cargo from the Vostok Oil project in Eastern Siberia, despite sanctions targeting Russia’s energy industry and the exit of Western business partners. At peak capacity, the project is expected to produce between 50 and 100 million tons of crude annually.

The Vostok Oil project is Russia's largest new oil development, comprising a group of fields in Krasnoyarsk Krai, some already producing and the rest new discoveries. A total of 2,000 wells have been drilled at the site, Rosneft’s chief executive Igor Sechin said, adding that the fields have combined reserves of some 7 billion tons of low-sulfur crude.

The Vostok Oil project had an estimated price tag of the ruble equivalent of $157 billion back in 2019. At the time, Rosneft had Western partners in the project, including Trafigura and Vitol, betting on continued strong demand for oil despite the political shift in favor of electrification. The total costs associated with the operation of the fields over their productive lifetime were estimated at $170 billion back in 2021.
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