Irkutsk Oil Company and Gazprom to work out lithium production project in the Kovyktinsky field

According to the document, the parties are interested in implementing a joint project to extract and process formation brines (mineralized underground water) from the Gazprom's Kovyktinsky field to produce lithium compounds and other valuable components.

The Kovyktinsky field’s groundwater contains large resources of natural lithium compounds. It is widely in demand in various industries, including the production of batteries for electronic equipment and electric transport.

Irkutsk Oil Company, in turn, has its own technologies for processing lithium-rich associated water and is ready to adapt them for processing of the formation brines from the Gazprom’s field.

Kovyktinsky field is the largest in the East Siberia. The recoverable gas reserves are 1.8 trillion cubic meters. The license to use the subsoil of the field belongs to Gazprom. The field is a backbone of the Irkutsk gas production centre and the resource base for the Power of Siberia gas pipeline (along with the Chayandinsky field in Yakutia).

Today, the Irkutsk Oil Company ranks among the largest independent oil producers in Russia. The company was established in 2000. The main beneficiaries are Nikolay Buynov, Chairman of the Irkutsk Oil Company Board of Directors, and Marina Sedykh, Member of the Board of Directors. The Company undertakes geological surveys, exploration, and production at 51 subsoil license blocks in Irkutsk Region, Krasnoyarsk Territory, and the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The largest recent investment project of Irkutsk Oil Company is the development of the gas and chemical cluster; the site includes gas recovery, preparation, transportation, and processing facilities, a helium plant, and a polymer plant. The company currently employs over 10 thousand employees.