Oil independent focuses on refining

Russia's largest independent oil producer, Lukoil, finished last year $US 8 billion in profit. That's according to its preliminary operational results. While the company managed to increase production of crude, it also boosted exports of its refined produ

The head of Lukoil, Vagit Alekperov, said the company pumped 113 million tonnes of oil last year. That output was fully compensated by newly-discovered oil deposits.

Lukoil’s crude oil exports dropped by 2 per cent as the company turned its focus to refining.

“The volume of crude oil that we export fell in 2007 because of the Russian government's taxation policy. And we think that is justified because it’s more efficient for companies to refine in Russia than to export crude oil. Last year Lukoil increased its exports of refined products by 7 per cent”, Alekperov said.