Gazprom will increase gas production in 2011, and its sales to countries outside the CIS will be higher by nearly 11% this year than in 2010, Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller told Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
"Gazprom will extract about 520 billion cubic meters of gas. Last year we extracted about 508 billion cubic meters. Exports to countries outside the CIS will exceed 151 billion cubic meters, and this is nearly 11% more than last year. Gas supplies to the CIS market will reach 48 billion cubic meters," Miller said at a meeting with Putin on Saturday.
The Gazprom chief said that until now prices within Russia have been substantially lower than in non-CIS countries. "Recently, we have been seeing prices rising steadily in our traditional buyer-countries in Europe. Today that is not having a negative dynamic on sales volumes. The price today, the average wholesale price in Russia, is five times lower than the price on our long-term contracts to deliver gas at the border to European countries, to European consumers," Miller said.
Money earned on exports is put mainly toward the carrying-out of gas projects and the creation of new gas-transport capacity, he said.
"Next year we’ll be putting into operation the Bovanenkovo-Ukhta gas pipeline. It will be the most modern gas pipeline in the world. This is a gas pipeline that will transport gas from the Bovanenkovo deposit in Yamal to the unified gas-supply system and will be launched in mid-2012, Miller said.
In Gazprom’s innovation program, much attention – as per government instructions – is paid to the gasification program, which will get more than 25 billion rubles in all in 2011.
Since 2005, Miller said, the level of gasification in the country has risen almost 10%. "If the level of gasification averages over 63% in the country, and has risen nine percent, then in the village the level of gasification rose almost 11% and reached 47% on average across Russia," he said.
Putin said that rate should be increased and gasification be developed in all regions of the country.
