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Gazprom keen on Kovykta stake



By Upstream staff 

Russia's Gazprom is striving to reach a deal on the huge Kovykta gas field that may include joint projects with BP and its Russian venture TNK-BP, deputy chief executive Alexander Medvedev said at the weekend.

"Like any two companies with an upstream mentality, it is not easy to find strategic projects with mutual benefits," Medvedev told Reuters in an interview on Saturday.

When asked about the possibility of Gazprom taking part in the Kovykta project, Medvedev said: "I do not exclude that -- why should I exclude that?"

"Before dealing with Gazprom in this situation and ending negotiations which have been taking place in different forms between Gazprom and TNK-BP, a decision must be made on administrative questions which have built up," he said.

"These decisions must be made soon," he said.

President Vladimir Putin said this month that he had run out of patience with BP and its billionaire Russian partners over repeated delays in bringing Kovykta on stream.

Kovykta has hit the headlines after the Russian government accused TNK-BP, the project's operator, of failing to fulfil the licence terms because of under-production and hinted that it might lose the permit altogether.

Kovykta is a 3 trillion cubic metre gas field close to the hungry Chinese market.

Medvedev also said the state-controlled gas monopoly was still in price discussions with Chinese companies seeking to buy gas from two pipelines it plans to build.

"Our principle is very simple: before constructing the pipelines, we need to agree terms to sell the gas," he said.


Monday, 11 June, 2007, 01:11 GMT  | last updated: Monday, 11 June, 2007, 01:13 GMT

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