Support The Moscow Times!

Gazprom Pushes Eastward Amid Record Sales in Europe

Russia's energy giant Gazprom has announced plans to expand its profile in Asia. This strategy comes at a time when the company is enjoying record profit's in Europe.

During a presentation at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Gazprom's head Alexei Miller noted that the company had expanded European exports by 10 percent between January and August 2016. In addition, the energy giant's monopoly share of the European market reached 31 percent.

Miller also signaled his intention to pivot the firm's strategy eastward. Gazprom has signed important agreements with the Asian market. For example, the “Power of Siberia” contract signed in May 2014 is projected to supply 38 billion cubic meters of gas to China each year. This still lags behind Germany's 45 bcm from Russia each year. The European state remains Gazprom's biggest partner.

“In the short term [in Asia] Russian gas exports to the east will be comparable with the volume of gas exports to Europe,” said Miller. Gazprom's head also announced plans to construct a helium processing plant in asia, as well as increase its export of chemical products.

LNG is another vital component of the company's Asian strategy. According to Miller, Gazprom plans to increase the production capacity of the “Sakhalin-2” plant. This facility produced 10.8 million tons of liquified gas was produced in 2015.

Other speakers at the forum, including BP's Bob Dudley, noted that Vladivostok is favorably located for Eastern cooperation. Dudley noted that the city acts as a “staging post” for Siberian resources to be effectively exported globally.

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more