RusEnergy

LONDON, December 14 (RIA Novosti, Alexander Smotrov) - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will decide whether to continue funding Sakhalin-2, a Russian oil and gas production sharing agreement, only after 120-day consultations on the project's ecological and social implications, the bank's president said Wednesday. "The companies included in the Sakhalin Energy consortium have submitted documents to us on how they have already improved the situation and what else they plan to do in these areas, and we have decided to start public consultations on these documents," Jean Lemiere said. Sakhalin Energy was established by Shell (owning a 55% stake), and two Japanese companies, Mitsui (25%) and Mitsubishi (20%), to implement and develop the Sakhalin 2 project, the cost of which is estimated at over $20 billion. The consortium turned to EBRD, which had financed the first stage of the project, with a request to continue funding for the second stage. This includes the construction of two oil platforms, and an underwater pipeline to the northern tip of the Sakhalin Island in Russia's Far East, and to a natural gas liquefaction plant. EBRD's main concerns are related to the threat to the population of gray whales off the coast of Sakhalin Island, the pipeline's route across thousands of small rivers, the planned construction of a waste disposal storage unit in Aniva Bay and the project's social influence on Sakhalin's population. Lemiere said that certain progress had already been achieved after Sakhalin Energy proposed to change the route of the pipeline's underwater segment to minimize damage to the population of gray whales. The organization is working in close coordination with a group of international experts on the issue.