- Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM +0.7%) confirms that it will stop drilling an exploratory well in Russia's Kara Sea in compliance with U.S. sanctions against Russia, saying it received a license from the U.S. Treasury Department to wind down operations.
- The latest round of sanctions had called for the removal of U.S. workers on projects in the Russian Arctic by Sept. 26; it is not clear whether the license will allow XOM to stop drilling on its own schedule.
- The drilling suspension does not immediately affect oil production for XOM or its Russian partner, Rosneft (OTCPK:RNFTF), since the project is aimed at deciding if future production would be economically feasible, but a potentially major source of new production could be denied if the suspension lasts.