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Rosneft Specialists Participate in Floating University Programme
12 February 2026
Specialists from Rosneft’s Arctic Scientific Centre (ASC) took part in the winter school of the Floating University, a Russian scientific and educational programme. Sakhalin greeted the programme participants – students from the country’s leading universities – for the first time. The three-day educational programme entitled “Exploring Unknown Waters: The conference, entitled ‘From Terra Incognita to Marine Biotechnology of the Future”, focused on a range of research areas in the northern seas, including geophysics, hydrology, biology and ecology.
Rosneft representatives delivered a presentation on the Company’s extensive scientific research in the Arctic region, which has been ongoing since 2012. Since then, over 60 expeditions have been organised and carried out along the entire Arctic Ocean coastline. These expeditions have been dedicated to the study of glaciers and icebergs, marine and coastal areas, rare species of animals and birds, including bioindicator species such as polar bears, wild reindeer, Atlantic walrus, etc. Scientists use information about the current status of these animal populations to make conclusions about the state of the fragile ecosystems of the Far North.
Rosneft specialists also presented a report on a large-scale project dedicated to the flora and fauna of the White Sea. Over a period of three years (2023-2025), ASC staff, in collaboration with colleagues from Innopraktika and scientists from the country’s leading scientific institutes, undertook a repeat of the expedition of Soviet hydrobiologist Konstantin Deryugin, who first described the biodiversity of the White Sea basin in detail 100 years ago. During the course of the project, scientists used both historical and innovative research methods, including molecular genetic techniques.
Rosneft and Innopraktika have launched another joint environmental project dedicated to cleaning the northern seas of chronic hydrocarbon pollution caused by maritime transport operations. The Oceanida biological product is derived from cold-loving bacteria that utilise hydrocarbons as a nutritional source. The product, the effectiveness of which has been proven in laboratory and field tests, has received a positive conclusion from the state environmental review.
As part of the Floating University winter school programme, students gained insight into the content of scientific atlases, which comprise knowledge about individual seas in the Russian Arctic, in addition to data obtained during Rosneft’s scientific research expeditions.
For reference:
The Floating University programme is being implemented as part of the UN Decade of Ocean Science, is part of the Science to Win initiative of the Russian Federation’s Decade of Science and Technology, and is supported by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. The event has been organised by the Floating University Coordination Centre at the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology.
The Floating University programme includes a winter science school and genuine sea expeditions. During these, students learn how to use equipment, collect data and conduct research, all under the guidance of mentors.
Department of Information and Advertising
Rosneft
February 12, 2026