The Gazprom Management Committee Chairman Alexey Miller met today with the founder of the KAMAZ Master rally raid team Semyon Yakubov and the team leader Vladimir Chagin at the Company's headquarters.

The team participants presented a gas-fueled KAMAZ project being executed jointly with Gazprom to promote natural gas use as a vehicle fuel. KAMAZ Master has designed a special model of a gas-driven KAMAZ sport truck for the Silk Way Rally.

 “This is an interesting project and a wonderful opportunity to promote NGV fuel. It will clearly show that gas may be used not only by conventional motor vehicles, but also by rally trucks,” said Alexey Miller.

After the meeting Alexey Miller inspected the KAMAZ upgraded model. Its team comprised of Sergey Kupriyanov, Press Secretary of the Gazprom Management Committee Chairman, Alexander Kupriyanov and Anatoly Tanin will take part in Silk Way that will begin with a ceremonial start on July 5 in the Red Square, Moscow. The rally route will be as follows: Moscow – Tambov – Volgograd – Elista – Astrakhan with the total length of 4,097 kilometers, including 2,822 kilometers of high speed off-road sections. More than hundred participants from 27 countries worldwide including 26 truck teams will compete in the rally.

Background

The KAMAZ Master rally raid team is a three-time off-road rally World Cup winner, a multiple prize winner, an eleven-time winner of the Dakar super marathon known for its highest level of complexity and a three-time winner of the international Silk Way Rally. The KAMAZ Master team includes 5 winners of World Cups, 10 International Masters of Sports, 10 Honored Masters of Sports, 8 Masters of Sports and 8 Candidate Masters of Sports.

The team members develop, design and assemble the KAMAZ sports trucks by themselves and participate in rallies on these vehicles.

Semyon Yakubov, founder of the KAMAZ Master rally raid team, is an International and Honored Master of Sports and a Merited Coach of Russia. He won the World Cup twice and he is a five-time winner of the Dakar Rally. Semyon Yakubov is a Champion of Russia.

Vladimir Chagin, the KAMAZ Master team leader, is an International Master of Sports and Russia' Honored Master of Sports. He won two World Cup rally marathons (in 1996 and 2000) and he is a seven-time winner of the Dakar Rally.

The international Silk Way Rally is a highly prestigious off-road race, as popular as the legendary Dakar Rally. Gazprom acted as a general sponsor of the first rally raid series that took off along the Kazan – Ashkhabad route in 2009. Russia hosts the rally from 2010.