The Rosneft company plans to invest 250 billion rubles in developing the Arctic shelf, and to drill four prospecting wells in the Laptev Sea shelf and eight in the Kara and Barents Seas between 2017 and 2021, RIA Novosti reports, citing the company's press service. On Monday Rosneft started drilling a well in the Khatanga section of the Laptev Sea.

"For the last five years, Rosneft investments in developing the Arctic shelf totaled about 100 billion rubles. The company does not intend to diminish its pace, and from 2017 until 2021, investments will grow 2.5 times to reach 250 billion rubles," the report reads.

"In the next few years Rosneft intends to ramp up prospecting drilling in the Arctic shelf. The company plans to drill four prospecting wells in the Eastern Arctic in the Laptev Sea shelf and eight wells in the more promising parts of the Western Arctic: the Kara and Barents Seas," Rosneft reports.

Rosneft owns 28 license blocks in the Arctic shelf with a total of 34 billion metric tons of crude oil equivalent. The company's share exceeds 78 percent of the total area of blocks in the Arctic. According to expert estimates, the Arctic shelf will provide from 20 to 30 percent of oil production in Russia by 2050.

Earlier on Monday, Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin said that in 2018, the company will start drilling in the Barents Sea, and in 2019 it will carry out drilling in the Kara Sea in partnership with the American company Exxon.