Rusneftegaz has published a preliminary calendar for the next fiscal year, with the scheduled disclosure of our consolidated financial statements on 7 April 2022 acting as the main highlight of what is set to be a busy year for us. This is immediately followed by our annual general meeting later that same week, where we intend to convene with our key stakeholders to discuss both our short and long-term plans. At the moment, this it is currently due to be held on 10 April 2022, albeit this date is subject to change prior to any further announcements. Moreover, it is the intention of the board of directors to host attendees in-person at a venue, although our organization retains the contingency of holding the event virtually, as per the previous two conferences, if circumstances change. On a more routine basis we plan to continue distributing full quarterly production reports four weeks after the cessation of each period, but there may be discrepancies between the time this information is circulated to relevant parties and when this material is uploaded onto our website, particularly when considering the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. 

​However, in the more immediate future it should also be noted that we will have a reduced capacity to respond to any nonessential matters, including via email and telephone, due to staff vacations occurring throughout the Christmas and New Year holiday. This disruption, which is expected to occur between 24 December 2021 and 10 January 2022, will not affect any of our other operations and will only impact our administrative functions. As a result, it is imperative that any correspondences be submitted to us as soon as possible to guarantee a response, although all messages received during this time will be monitored and receive a reply if necessary. At the end of this timeframe, we will strive to address all pending communications within one working day, as will all our affiliates and subsidiaries who are also affected by this. The new provisional calendar can be viewed in its entirety on our website, and whilst all the dates above are liable to be modified at the discretion of the board, management considers any major alterations unlikely in spite on the challenges of the past few years. Any queries regarding this announcement should be directed through the usual channels at your earliest convenience, principally to ensure an answer before our ability to do so is limited. We necessitate your cooperation and understanding regarding this pertinent topic.

Three days ago, Rusneftegaz celebrated the achievements of our staff throughout the last year by bestowing awards upon worthy winners at an event held virtually. As a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, a formal ceremony in Moscow was again eschewed, with prizes being distributed by the contemporaries of those selected for accolades instead of executives. All the individuals chosen for recognition were nominated by both their colleagues and managers in appreciation of their hard work or outstanding contribution to our enterprise over the last twelve months. Foremost, the management board elected to present twenty members of our team with special commendations for their remarkable work over the past year, which was compounded by the difficulties and inconveniences of our disease mitigation policies. Such a large total is unprecedented in our corporate history, with most such rewards typically being granted for long service or noteworthy feats. For instance, five of our personnel have been recognized for assuming extraordinary workloads while their peers were in quarantine, with our company doctor, Leonid Balakin, also honored for his exceptional performance over the past eighteen months. At the end of the night, our Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Aleksandr Filyurin, delivered the following remarks: 

“The board and I would like to place on record our congratulations to all the award winners. We continue to be amazed by what our staff are willing to do to help Rusneftegaz, especially considering the tough year we have faced. Understandably, there have been many challenges this year, but as a team we have faced them, and we are better because of it. Speaking from a personal perspective, I am very proud of what we have managed to achieve despite these challenges, and I think we will see the rewards of this next year. I, along with all the people I have been speaking to, have started to see the light at the end of the tunnel of this pandemic. Obviously, there are a lot of caveats, and I am not a medical expert, but I can see lots of reasons to be optimistic about next year. In an ideal scenario, we will be able to put all our existing plans back into motion and continue as if none of this ever happened. The board and I are working very hard to be prepared if that is the case, so that we are ready to get back to normal and continue to realize our ambitions to become one of the largest companies in the world.” 

The main winners of the evening were Oleg Patrushev and Eduard Kopeykin, who were named employee and young employee of the year, respectively. The judges looked particularly favorably upon the accomplishments of the former when he had to unexpectedly lead a team of fellow engineers to urgently fix a major fault at one of our production sites. Similarly, the latter finished an admirable second in his class at the end of the academic year, in spite of a family tragedy having a significant impact on his studies. As an organization, we hope that this recognition will inspire all recipients to strive to attain even greater success, and we will endeavor to continue acknowledging the efforts of all our workers. It is important to note that although this function was held remotely, all appropriate coronavirus prevention procedures were adhered to as the prizes were presented. However, we are broadly optimistic that next year we will be able to arrange for this occasion to be held with all attendees present in Moscow, as current and continuing circumstances have determined that such an event has not taken place in person since 2019. Regardless of whether this happens, we shall always be grateful to all our staff for what we are forecasting to be another twelve months of prosperity.

Following various ordinances on 20 and 21 October, Rusneftegaz can announce that it shall temporarily close its Moscow headquarters on 28 October, and that all regional offices will suspend operations between 30 October and 7 November due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. As a consequence of these decrees, our administrative staff will have a restricted capacity to respond to any nonessential communications, including both electronic and telephone messages, until the end of this period. In response to these events, our Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Aleksandr Filyurin, made the following statement: 

“It is obviously very disappointing to have to shut down our administrative operations again after we had done so much work to keep ourselves open in a safe way that was in full compliance with all recommendations and laws. We do, however, understand why this is happening, and have done everything we can to keep all our staff safe over the past eighteen months. The board and I hope that everyone who works for this company can do all they can to keep themselves safe and healthy during this challenging time.” 

Whilst a considerable percentage of staff and contractors shall continue to work as normal and or have previously been directed to work remotely, our organization has and will continue to be vigilant in maintaining strong preventative measures to prevent contamination on company property. This includes, but is not limited to, the mandatory use of facemasks, the deployment of sanitizer and the implementation of distancing measures. All such provisions are under regular review and will be changed as and when it is deemed appropriate and or necessary. Any queries pertaining to this update should be directed via the usual channels, and any staff question should be submitted to their line manager in due course. We necessitate the cooperation and understanding of all employees, contractors and external parties at this critical time.

After an extensive consultation, Rusneftegaz can announce that we have elected to postpone any formal requirement for our staff to return to solely office-based working on a temporary basis. Whilst a significant proportion of administrative employees have heretofore returned to their posts either partially or in full, in many instances this has not been possible for a variety of justifiable reasons. As many will be aware, it was originally intended that our administrative and office-based workers would fully return to their respective workplaces during the summer of this year. However, management regularly audits our coronavirus mitigation strategy every three weeks, and has previously opted to delay a complete end to home working twice at reviews in both June and July. As a result, there is now consensus amongst our board that there are such low prospects of the majority of our staff returning to any kind of office-based work before respiratory virus rates surge with the advent of autumn, that it is no longer necessary to analyze the prospects of an end to home working at regular intervals. Instead, our management shall determine when the conditions are pertinent for a return to the policies set forth prior to March 2020, and at such a time a return to regular workstations shall be compulsory and non-negotiable. In response to this news, our Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Aleksandr Filyurin, gave these remarks in response: 

“It is obviously very disappointing that we cannot end remote working at this time, but we understand the reasons why, and know that we have to compromise during these challenging times. The remote working arrangement has not been good for Rusneftegaz, we have suffered in terms of productivity, and in terms of collaboration and effectiveness. I think it is important to state that we have no intention of retaining this policy in any capacity when the pandemic ends. Put simply, it has not worked for us in the way that we hoped. The only positive for us is that it has ensured that our staff have been able to do enough to keep this company functioning during this time, but there are a lot of things have been delayed or neglected entirely. A lot of these problems are not our fault, other companies have been working at a reduced capacity too, and that has affected our plans. But at board level, we are working to rectify this once the pandemic is over, and hope that we will be in a position to complete all these plans when the time is right.” 

We can also disclose that we do not intend to introduce or enforce any type of vaccination mandate upon our staff unless obliged to do so by law, although in the instance that aforementioned legislation were to take effect in any of the jurisdictions our organization operates in, it would compel any unvaccinated workers to perform their roles remotely where possible. Any instances where this would not be possible shall be managed on a case-by-case basis at the appropriate time. For all those who do not operate in an office-based role, which includes the majority of our employees, we can confirm that all existing protocols and containment measure are to remain, and will continue to be reviewed and updated every three weeks as per usual. This includes the ongoing and compulsory FFP3, N99 and or 12.4.191-2011 mask mandate when inside company buildings and structures, with Rusneftegaz continuing to provide these aforementioned coverings to all our workers at no cost for the foreseeable future. Such stringent regulations have resulted in our organization successfully containing the pandemic, with only a nominal number of cases affiliated with close contact in a work environment on sites controlled by our company. Any questions by staff in relation to this statement should be submitted to their manager in due course. Similarly, all general queries pertaining to the matter discussed in this bulletin should be directed via the usual channel, such as telephone and email. We necessitate your cooperation and understanding with such affairs at this concerning time.