Shell has withdrawn from a proposed joint venture (50-50 JV) with Gazprom to develop license blocks in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug in the Russian Arctic, due to the fall in oil prices and the coronavirus epidemic. As part a preliminary agreement deal signed in June 2019, Shell was supposed to acquire a 50% stake in the share capital of Meretoyakha Neftegaz, which holds licensing rights to the Meretoyakhinskoye field, along with license blocks at various stages of development, namely the Tazovsky and Severo-Sambrugsky blocks, and two Zapadno-Yubileiny blocks in the Yamalo-Nenets area. The joint venture, Meretoyakha Neftegaz, would have overseen upstream assets with more than 8 Gbl of oil resources (around 1.1 Gt of oil).
Gazprom Neft will continue developing those license blocks independently, according to the previously approved work plan. Development and commercial production at the Tazovsky field is expected to start by the end of 2020. Gazprom Neft has been long collaborating with Shell. In late March 2020, partners agreed to develop the Salym group of oil fields, including the Zapadno-Salymskoye, Verkhnesalymskoye and Vadelipskoye blocks in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug.