Tomskhosted today a working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee and Viktor Tolokonsky, Plenipotentiary Envoy of the Russian Federation President to the Siberian Federal Okrug (SFO).

The discussion centered on the arrangement of gas supply and gasification of the SFO. The parties emphasized that socio-economic development of the region was largely dependent on these activities.

Alexey Miller and Viktor Tolokonsky also paid attention to the prospects for interaction within the Altai project. As was noted, it made sense to consider the issue of assigning the top-priority infrastructure project status to the Altai gas pipeline when preparing a target-oriented action plan in the SFO on implementing the Socio-Economic Development Strategy in Siberia until 2020.

The parties pointed out the need to create a favorable economic climate for gas projects in the Okrug municipalities.

Background:

The Siberian Federal Okrug comprises the Republics of Altai, Buryatia, Tyva, Khakasia; the Altai, Krasnoyarsk and Transbaikal Krais; the Irkutsk, Kemerovo, Novosibirsk, Omsk and Tomsk Oblasts. Gazprom signed Agreements of Cooperation with all of them and Accords on Gasification with ten constituents (except for the Republics of Khakasia and Tyva).

Natural gas penetration in the SFO is at 5.5 per cent including 6.5 per cent in cities and towns and 3.1 per cent in the rural area. The identical indicators throughout Russia average 63.2, 67.5 and 45.5 per cent respectively.

Between 2005 and 2009 Gazprom invested RUB 6.4 billion to promote gasification in SFO regions. In 2010 more than RUB 900 million were allocated for these purposes.

The Altai project stipulates supplying natural gas from Western Siberian fields to China via the western area of the Russian-Chinese border.