The head of GazpromnAlexei Miller briefed Russian President Vladimir Putin on the company’s results in 2015, and discussed, in particular, gas supply figures for the domestic and European markets and the programme for connecting Russia’s regions to the gas network. The meeting took place in Moscow, on February 29.
The head of GazpromnAlexei Miller briefed Russian President Vladimir Putin on the company’s results in 2015, and discussed, in particular, gas supply figures for the domestic and European markets and the programme for connecting Russia’s regions to the gas network. The meeting took place in Moscow, on February 29.
According to Miller’s reportGazprom produced 418.5 billion cubic metres of gas last year. «This was sufficient to cover in full reliable and stable supplies for export markets and for our own country’s needs. Supplies of Gazprom’s own gas to the domestic market came to 205 billion cubic metres.It is less than in 2014. As for export supplies, they came to 159.4 billion cubic metres. This covers deliveries to markets beyond the CIS countries and gas supplies to Europe. These exports increased by 11.8 billion cubic metres. Total gas exports increased by 8 percent. Looking at the current trends, total gas exports have increased by 37.5 percent since the start of 2016», he said.
He stressed that Germany had set a record for Russian gas purchases with 43.5 billion cubic metres in 2015. «This is an increase of 6 billion cubic metres on 2014. But this year, we see that gas supplies to Germany and other large European countries are growing even faster. Gas supplies to Germany are up by 44 percent since the start of the year, up by 42 percent to Italy, 73 percent to France, and 52 percent to Austria. Total export growth came to 11.8 billion cubic metres in 2015, but the overall figure was already up by 7.5 billion cubic metres in the first two months of this year alone. There is therefore no doubt that the projects to build new gas transport routes to Europe, to northwest Europe, are economically justified and backed up by the growing demand that we see right now», Miller added.
It is known that Gazprom signed a memorandum in Rome on evaluating the need to build a gas pipeline from Russia via the Black Sea to other countries. The route would head to Greece and then on to Italy. Under the memorandum’s terms, the feasibility studies and economic assessments will be completed by the end of 2016. «Our departure point with our European partners in this work is the Poseidon project, which we drafted at one point with our Greek, Italian and French colleagues. This project planned for transport of 12 billion cubic metres of Azerbaijani gas from Greece across the Ionian Sea to southern Italy», the head of Gazprom said.
