An extended meeting of OAO LUKOIL's Board of Directors was held in Moscow today to review operations and financial performance in the first six months of 2009.

The Board also discussed training and education of the personnel and noted that improvement of professional competence of the Company’s managers and specialists was  a priority goal. Days of professional training, visiting seminars of Russia's best higher educational institutions held at the Company's subsidiaries and also corporate programs of advanced training for the executive and managerial staff have become a regular fixture.

In 2008, various programs of advanced training within LUKOIL Group encompassed 36.1 thousand employees. Over 17 thousand employees were trained and certified in occupational safety and labor protection.

LUKOIL widely uses a system of distance teaching, which helps on-the-job training. Presently, over 8 thousand employees are involved in distance learning, and some 6 thousand receive training by means of electronic courses.

Over 40 thousand employees were trained for blue-collar jobs in 2008.