A new entity that will take over the Sakhalin-1 oil and gas project in the Russian Far East has been officially set up.

Russian state media TASS reported that the company was registered on Friday. Its head office is located in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.

The move comes after the Russian government issued a decree to that end. A subsidiary of state-run Rosneft was assigned to become the new entity.

Foreign participants in the Sakhalin-1 project must notify the Russian government within one month if they agree to retain their stakes in the project.

Japan has a 30 percent stake in the project through Sakhalin Oil and Gas Development Company, or SODECO.

Half of the holding is owned by the Japanese government, and the rest is held by businesses, including Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. and trading firms Itochu and Marubeni.

The Sakhalin-1 project was originally led by Exxon Mobil with Rosneft, SODECO and others as partners. But in March, Exxon announced its intention to end its operations in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.