An executive order has been issued from the President of the Russian Federation instructing that the week from 30 March until 3 April is to be a non-working week. As a direct consequence of this, all non-essential workplaces are to temporarily close with immediate effect, including all Rusneftegaz corporate and regional offices. However, due to the fact that we have a plethora of continuous operations that cannot be suspended or shut down, all staff should be aware that their managers will send electronic communications tomorrow to inform whether it will be necessary to report to work during this period. As these facilities will continue operate as normal during this timeframe, our board of directors has published a comprehensive plan to mitigate the threat of coronavirus on our operations, and also to minimize the number of staff required on these sites. Foremost, this shall entail substantially increasing the number of both internal and external communications regarding the pandemic, as recommended by Rospotrebnadzor, to ensure each member of our workforce is alert to inherent risks of contagion. In order to help facilitate this, posters are to be displayed outlining these changes, and all new procedures will be constantly reviewed for their effectiveness by management. Any deliberate attempt to undermine these new procedures will result in disciplinary action. Considering these major developments, our Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Aleksandr Filyurin, subsequently issued these remarks: 

“This is not only a very concerning time for Rusneftegaz, but for the entire world. It would normally be very disappointing to have to shut down parts of the business, but considering the circumstances, I can honestly say that I support this decision. This appears to be a major threat to us, and at the moment saving lives is more important than our profit margins. I hope that I can reassure all our staff by saying that we are doing everything we can to prevent the spread of coronavirus here at Rusneftegaz by taking all the measures that we can. From a personal perspective, I have no intention of placing my family and I in any form of danger, so we will not be returning until it is safe to do so. Fortunately, by taking action now, I think we will be able to return in a few weeks, all this will have passed, and we will be safe again. I also think it is a good time for the board and I to place on record our thanks to all our staff that will be working as normal during this time. I would also like to thank all the staff who will be working from their homes for the next few weeks. We are facing a difficult time, but we are doing so together, and I pray to God that this will end and we can return to normal soon.” 

As an organization with a broad range of interests, each business within our company grouping will be affected uniquely, and whilst management has deployed the utmost diligence in the preparation of these measures, they are still subject to change if advice from external bodies is modified. For those asked to report to work, all staff are to face temperature checks upon arrival, with any workers displaying an abnormal result being ejected from the site immediately. All workers are to have access to hand sanitizer in every room, and all workstations are to be routinely disinfected by cleaning staff throughout the day. Similarly, the handover procedures for shift changes have been reconfigured to minimize personal contact, and all meetings are to be cancelled or held electronically. Likewise, selected members of our staff will begin to work remotely, and any employees enrolled on education programs will now complete their courses electronically rather than at an institution. All business travel, both in Russia and internationally, has been suspended with immediate effect. Correspondingly, the board of directors is set to deliberate the future on the 2020 annual general meeting in consultation with key stakeholders, whilst all other corporate events due to be held in April have been postponed indefinitely. As a consequence of these changes, we will have limited capacity to respond to any nonessential communications during the week of the closure, including to any electronic or telephone messages. Therefore, we request that all staff queries be directed to their manager, who will have received a comprehensive briefing with regards to these new arrangements. External questions via all the existing channels are still welcome, but may be affected by our reductions in working capacity throughout this period. We necessitate your cooperation and understanding with this vital matter.

Rusneftegaz can announce that we have renewed our research and development program for a further five years, which shall enable our organization to build upon the work of the past decade. In a broader context, this involves continuing the majority of our ongoing projects through to completion, in conjunction with new schemes to facilitate the growth of our company in the years ahead. For instance, our technical staff will remain engaged with our proposals to engineer upgrades for our coal-fired steam generators, that operate as an essential part of our power plants. This should ultimately result in considerable reductions in fuel consumption and both pollution and carbon emissions. Likewise, at the culmination of this plan, Rusneftegaz intends to widen the scope of our studies into other major components within generation units, namely turbines and condensers. Whilst our corporation will not have the capacity to manufacture such apparatus ourselves in the near future, our scientists can, however, make observations and recommendations that can be implemented at any plants that Rusneftegaz acquires, either in Russia or abroad, over the course of the next decade. This information can additionally be utilized in the design of modular power units, which our organization could one day construct at locations across the globe, primarily to expand our generating capacity. Following the disclosures regarding this extensive program, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Aleksandr Filyurin, remarked: 

“The board and I have been extremely impressed by the work that was done by our research and development team over the past five years, and now is the opportune moment to place on record our thanks to all of them personally. But it is also a good time to start thinking about the future. Last year, we were in serious negotiations to buy power plants in India, but unfortunately, those negotiations were unsuccessful. Now, the senior leadership and I are accountable for that, but it is fair to say that this has also provided some benefits for other areas of our business. The original plan was that the project researching steam generators would be finalized when our team could adapt the generators of an existing plant and get it working again, with a bit of improvisation if necessary. Now that there has been more time to think about it, we now think it is best to take a far more meticulous approach to this. We have allocated additional time to this part of our research, and I am optimistic that by the time we do acquire a plant, the designs would have long since been finalized. Once that is finished, we should be able to move onto the next phases of our research; designing a universal power station that could be situated anywhere in the world. These two projects together will provide the long-term basis for our future plans in the energy sector, and I think that we have the capacity to implement this properly. It shows how important good research and development is to a company like Rusneftegaz. Five years ago, this was just an oil company, that also happened to own a few power generating units in Russia, but five years in the future, Rusneftegaz will be an energy conglomerate with interests in multiple continents. Personally, I think that is a major achievement, and all those who helped us do this should be extremely proud of themselves.” 

In conjunction with these two flagship proposals, Rusneftegaz will also continue to experiment with how hydrogen can be transformed into a useful fuel, such as through electrolysis or catalytic reformation. Although there has been less progress with this study than there has been in other areas, our management remains of the steadfast belief that existing and future battery technology is inherently limited by both the limits of chemistry, in addition to the scarcity of the rare elements of which these are composed. Thus, we believe that most industries will seek alternative solutions to fulfill their, depending on location, statutory requirements to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and the colorless and odorless gas is the most effective ecological conduit to do so. Should this particular scheme be successful, Rusneftegaz could be a market leader in hydrogen production in the near future, specifically when it is considered that almost all other major corporations are focusing all their efforts into electrochemical cells, and neglecting viable, alternative solutions. By the judgment of our board of directors, it is a calculated risk to apportion an increased percentage of our allocated budget into this venture, and when our existing research capacity and monetary resources are taken into account, these uncertainties are minimized further. As such, the board has deemed it appropriate to spend significant funds on the construction of a new, combined facility for these activities to take place in. The site will merge our existing workshops with a state-of-the-art laboratory, and provide a base for all our activities in Western Siberia. Despite the fact these plans are preliminary at this time; management anticipates this hub opening, with an abundance of modern instruments, tools and paraphernalia correspondingly, by 2026.   

Whilst our work to improve the next generation of sustainable technologies is a long-term endeavor, in the immediate months and years ahead, the primary focus of our engineers will be to respond to the day-to-day scientific and technological needs of our organization. Such undertakings involve a broad range of unique requirements, including analyzing and adapting the latest best working practices to our circumstances. This is in addition to ensuring the longevity and viability of our infrastructure and equipment, principally through the deployment of the highest maintenance standards achievable. These personnel will also be expected to formulate critical opinions and give informed advice with regard to the acquisition of new assets and apparatus when necessary, particularly in areas where a high degree of specialist knowledge is required. To facilitate this, Rusneftegaz has renewed our commitment to the ongoing education of all of our employees for the duration of this scheme, with the intention that the information and understanding accumulated can be utilized where needed within our organization. Thus, it is the intention of our board of directors to extend the partnerships we have formed with other companies and institutions over the course of our corporate history. Collaborations with these parties remain a fundamental principle of our broader research and development strategy, ultimately for the mutual benefit of all involved actors. For example, Rusneftegaz has previously supported the work of local and international seismologists by providing both data and materials for their geological surveys, with this backing set to continue long into the future. 

Centrally, this program has been conceptualized to expand upon the work completed under its immediate precursor, in conjunction with the broader progress that our organization has registered since 2015. At its core, Rusneftegaz thrives upon being a dynamic and innovative company, constantly seeking to better our existing business practices and grow expeditiously. Therefore, our management will strive to adequately protect any intellectual property that should emerge from our invention, should the opportunity to do so arise. Such actions will not merely be in the best interest of Rusneftegaz, but also for the wider benefit of the Russian Federation, and in certain circumstances, the world. To enable this aforementioned global progression, our company plans to establish multiple prizes for breakthroughs in the energy sector, with the respective winners granted suitable rewards accordingly. This policy has been devised for both children and adults to both propose viable solutions to some of the great conundrums of our age, and potentially be remunerated with a financial reward for their ideas. The creation of this award is anticipated to provide valuable external opinions for our researchers and senior leadership to analyze, which could ultimately yield the alternative views that could be transformation for our company and our wider activities. Although Rusneftegaz always appoints the most talented and intelligent individuals on merit, it is at times necessary to prevent hegemonic viewpoints from being collectively formed. The opening date for entries for the first year of this prize will be announced in due course, in conjunction with any updates affiliated with our broader development strategy.

A preliminary calendar for the forthcoming fiscal year has been published by Rusneftegaz, highlighting the planned release of our consolidated financial statements on 7 April 2020 as a key event amidst a year of substantial endeavors. Immediately thereafter, our annual general meeting is scheduled to occur during the same week, serving as a platform for meaningful dialogues with our primary stakeholders regarding our short and long-term strategies. Currently, the specified conference is planned for 10 April 2020, although it is important to acknowledge that this date is subject to alteration prior to any subsequent notifications. In accordance with our customary practices, we plan to continue the distribution of complete quarterly production reports within a span of four weeks following the culmination of each reporting period. However, it is essential to recognize that discrepancies may arise concerning the timing of information dissemination to concerned parties, and the subsequent upload of said material onto our website. 

​Moreover, it is crucial to note that in the immediate future, we anticipate a limited capacity to address nonessential matters, both through email and telephone, due to staff vacations coinciding with the Christmas and New Year holiday. The forthcoming disruption, which will transpire from 24 December 2019 and 9 January 2020, will have no impact on our other operations and will solely affect our administrative functions. Therefore, it is crucial that all correspondences be promptly submitted to us to secure a response. Nevertheless, we can assure all those affected that all messages received during this period will be closely monitored and attended to if deemed essential. Following the conclusion of this designated timeframe, we will diligently strive to address all pending communications within one working day, as will our affiliates and subsidiaries who are likewise affected by this event. The full provisional calendar is available to view on our official website, and while the dates provided above are subject to potential adjustments at the discretion of the board, the management presently deems the likelihood of such alterations as minimal. We urge anyone with queries concerning this announcement to contact us via the customary channels at the earliest convenience, principally to ensure a timely response before the reduction in our capacity to do so arises. We request your cooperation and understanding regarding this pertinent subject.