Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee and Dmitry Konov, Chief Executive Officer of SIBUR signed today at the Gazprom headquarters a Memorandum of Cooperation while constructing a gas processing plant and a gas chemical complex in Belogorsk, Amur Region.

According to the document, the parties will join their efforts as part of the potential creation of a powerful complex for processing multicomponent gas from fields of the Yakutia and Irkutsk gas production centers being currently formed by Gazprom within the Eastern Gas Program.

Gazprom is planning to construct a gas processing plant in Belogorsk with the annual capacity of up to 60 billion cubic meters, where ethane and other valuable components will be stripped from natural gas. SIBUR, in its turn, intends to create a gas chemical complex technologically connected with the gas processing plant for the purpose of processing ethane, obtaining monomers and subsequent manufacturing of polymers.

The Memorandum outlines general pricing mechanisms for ethane supplies, projects synchronization and a synergetic effect assurance.

“The efficient and reasonable use of all the valuable components of natural gas from eastern fields is a priority of Gazprom's comprehensive activities in Russia's East. The partnership with SIBUR is a sample model of Gazprom's cooperation with other investors within the Eastern Gas Program: Gazprom creates a resource base and facilities for production, transmission and initial processing, while our partners construct capacities for chemical processing and manufacturing of value added products. The joint activities will result in a considerable economic effect and become an extra incentive for developing Eastern Siberia and the Far East,” said Alexey Miller.

“SIBUR constantly looks into new possibilities of developing the petrochemical sector to enhance its leadership position in Russia and enter new target export markets. The cooperation with Gazprom will make it possible to unlock the potential of interaction among manufacturers and processers to create highly competitive capacities for advanced processing of hydrocarbon feedstock into valuable petrochemical products. The implementation of such large-scale projects in new gas production regions requires accurate synchronization and detailed study of all parameters,” said Dmitry Konov.

Background

The Chayandinskoye and Kovyktinskoye fields (gas reserves amounting to some 1.2 and 1.5 trillion cubic meters of gas respectively) are the cornerstones of the Yakutia and Irkutsk gas production centers being a part of the state-run Eastern Gas Program. The Program was approved in September 2007 by the Ministry of Industry and Energy of the Russian Federation. Gazprom was appointed by the Russian Government as the Program execution coordinator.

In order to convey gas from the Yakutia and Irkutsk gas production centers via Belogorsk to Vladivostok Gazprom is planning to construct the Power of Siberia gas transmission system.

SIBUR is a vertically integrated gas processing and petrochemical company, which owns and controls Russia's major gas processing business in terms of associated gas output and which is the leader of the Russian petrochemical industry.

The company operates in 27 production sites throughout Russia. SIBUR sells its products to over 1,500 major consumers engaged in the fuel and energy complex, car manufacturing, construction, basic goods manufacturing, chemical and other industries in about 60 countries of the world.