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Putin says Gazprom can 'easily' get funds for Shtokman: report
Platts
Moscow
Petroleumworld.com 10 12 06
Russia's Gazprom can "easily" raise funds for the development of its huge
Shtokman gas field in the Barents Sea on financial markets, Russia's President
Vladimir Putin said in an interview with Germany's newspaper Suddeutsche
Zeitung.
In his first comment on Gazprom's decision to change the development plan
for Shtokman, Putin said Gazprom needed assets in exchange for stakes in the
field with 3.7 trillion cubic meters in reserves, but no one from the five
shortlisted firms made an adequate offer.
"Gazprom some time ago issued a tender for the development of this
field.Gazprom set a condition that to become a partner in the project and a
partial owner of the resources they need to offer Gazprom certain assets,"
Putin said in the interview posted on the Kremlin's website late Tuesday.
"Not money, but assets. Money is not needed for such high liquidity
projects, a it can be easily raised on world financial markets," Putin said
during a two-day visit to Germany Tuesday and Wednesday.
"But no one was able to offer equal assets for such huge reserves," Putin
added.
The first stage of the Shtokman's project is estimated to cost some $12
to $14 billion. Analysts believe the whole project could cost $30 billion and
more.
Norway's Norsk Hydro and Statoil, France's Total, US' Chevron and
ConocoPhillips were bidding to become Gazprom's partners in the project.
Putin also said that although Gazprom had dropped its plan to liquefy all
Shtokman gas and send it by tankers to the US, partial LNG supplies from the
field still remained an option.
"We have changed the decision. Now part of this gas will be piped to
Germany, and partially it will be liquefied and sent to international markets.
Partially," Putin said adding there was no answer yet what part of Shtokman
gas could become LNG.
Putin also reiterated Gazprom's statements that the company would still
attract partners for the gas and LNG production at the field, as well as for
transportation.
"But Gazprom will remain the sole subsoil user and owner of these
resources," he concluded.
--Anna Shiryaevskaya, anna_shiryaevskaya@platts.comFor similar stories, take a trial to Platts European Natural Gas Report at
http://www.platts.com/Request%20More%20Information/Platts 11 10 06
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