Golneft

JSC Golneft (Голнефть) is a Russian integrated energy company headquartered in Saint Petersburg. Golneft is active in every area of the oil and gas industries, and also invests in alternative energy applications through its Golnext programme.

Founded in 2026 as Polyargaz, Golneft is focused on developing resources in the Arctic Ocean, which led to a diplomatic incident in 2031 when the company conducted exploratory drilling in the Lomonosov Ridge. In 2040, Yuri Golitsyn took control of Golneft following the Hammerblow, eventually growing it into the largest company in Russia by revenue.

On September 30th 2049, Golitsyn was assassinated in Beijing, which prompted Russian President Denis Molchalin to announce an investigation of Golneft in connection with the attack. On October 3rd 2049, Roman Golitsyn assumed the duties of Golneft’s acting director-general and denounced Molchalin’s move, stating that his “attention should be on China.”

HistoryPermalink

FoundingPermalink

Golneft was founded on May 19th 2026 as Polyargaz, a startup established by a group of Lukoil executives led by Oleg Golitsyn. Polyargaz’s business model was focused on major undeveloped resources in the Arctic Ocean, which represented a significant weakness in Russia‘s oil industry due to lacking technology and know-how for effective off-shore production. Having seen Rosneft spend fifteen years unsuccessfully attempting to secure partners for drilling ventures in the Arctic Ocean, Golitsyn became convinced that building up Russia’s domestic capabilities was the only viable path forward.

Following a successful seed funding round in 2027, Golitsyn strategically recruited engineering specialists and project managers from international oil producers. In May 2028, Polyargaz petitioned to take over Rosneft’s moribund license blocks in the East-Prinovozemelsky field. After an agreement was reached on October 10th 2028, construction began on the company’s first subsea platform, which became operational in September 2030.

Lomonosov controversyPermalink

In 2031, Polyargaz conducted exploratory drilling in the Lomonosov Ridge. The move sparked significant controversy, as ownership of this region of the Arctic Ocean had been disputed by Denmark, Canada, and Russia since 2001, with no United Nations (UN) ruling on these competing claims. Then-Russian President Vladimir Putin publicly backed Polyargaz’s efforts, claiming extensive evidence for Russia’s sovereignty over the area and chiding the UN’s arbitration panel for failing to deliver a verdict after three decades of deliberation.

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During an investor call in April 2033, Golitsyn unexpectedly announced plans for Polyargaz’s largest project to date: Staratelnaya (Старательная, prospector), a new subsea platform on the Lomonosov Ridge that carried the full backing of then-President Sergey Sobyanin, who had succeeded Putin in 2032. However, technical issues and cost overruns delayed Staratelnaya’s completion into 2035, when incoming President Denis Molchalin announced that his government would not sanction further projects in the Arctic Ocean until all territorial disputes had been resolved. The fallout badly damaged Polyargaz’s reputation, which led to Golitsyn being ousted as chair by the company’s board of directors in January 2036.

Restructuring under Yuri GolitsynPermalink

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In 2039, Molchalin introduced the Hammerblow, which broke up the state-owned monopoly of Rosneft and Gazprom, and auctioned off their strategic assets. With restrictions on foreign investment having been relaxed by the primireniye reforms, Yuri Golitsyn assembled a consortium of investors to acquire these assets and merged them into a new business entity, Golneft. In July 2040, Golneft acquired Polyargaz following an unsuccessful lawsuit, turning Golitsyn into a leading player in the energy industry. ^[1]

With international demand for oil and natural gas weakening, Golneft scaled back plans for the East-Prinovozemelsky field in 2042 and terminated its involvement in Power of Siberia 3, a proposed second western route for Russian natural gas to China. Golneft’s business ventures were further impacted by several political rows between Golitsyn and Molchalin, whom he accused of exerting political pressure on his financing partners due to his outspoken anti-G6 stance.

In February 2043, Golitsyn unveiled Golnext, a new investment programme for alternative energy applications. Golnext’s initial slate of projects faced political as well as financial challenges. A partnership with Hevel Group on 800MW of capacity in Astrakhan attracted international attention but fell apart after losing key investors, while a proposed geothermal plant in Kamchatka suffered repeated delays with the introduction of new environmental regulations. Following a dispute over permitting rights for a Siberian wind farm, Golnext abandoned its remaining domestic projects in 2046 in favor of international joint ventures.

See alsoPermalink

• Yuri Golitsyn
• Denis Molchalin

ReferencesPermalink