"A completely new guarantor"

Gazprom proposes another Energy Charter to the European Union

The friendly atmosphere in which the last Russia-EU summit took place in Sochi significantly eased tensions in relations between the two largest energy partners. Gazprom seems to have decided to take advantage of the confusion in the camp of the European negotiators and consolidate the achieved success. On Friday, Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Concern Alexander Medvedev, in fact, for the first time publicly proposed developing an alternative document to the Energy Charter, “a completely new guarantor of European energy security.” So far, there has been no official reaction from Brussels to the latest offensive initiative of the Russian gas monopolist. But it is easy to assume that rejection of the Energy Charter will mean the collapse of the EU policy of recent years aimed at diversifying sources of hydrocarbon supplies, demonopolizing the Russian gas industry and free transit of Central Asian raw materials through Gazprom pipes.

“If the summit had not taken place in Sochi, the best song accompaniment to today’s conference would have been “The clouds have risen over the city, there is a smell of thunder in the air,” Interfax quotes Mr. Medvedev. - But, fortunately, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schussel, who chairs the EU, and the head of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Duran Barroso. “According to the information I have received, the tone of the negotiations and the approaches that have been demonstrated inspire optimism and clear away the clouds that have been raised by a number of journalists and political figures.” He also noted that the latest discussion between the EU countries and Russia on gas issues “had analogies with the Cold War, but was not substantive.” “After yesterday’s meeting, I propose to move on to a constructive consideration of all problems and do not exclude that in the course of such a dialogue a new framework document may be born, which, if not replace the Energy Charter, will at least create a completely new guarantor of European energy security that would work for a long time.” years,” summed up the Gazprom top manager.

The demand to ratify the Energy Charter, which the Russian government signed 12 years ago, is one of the main ones in the package of EU negotiators. The so-called Transit Protocol to the Charter stands in the way of Moscow’s final accession to this document, which is designed to guarantee investments in the fuel and energy complex. About a month ago, Mr. Medvedev quite openly called him “stillborn.” High-ranking Russian officials also criticized the document. In particular, on the eve of the Sochi summit, Russian Presidential Aide Igor Shuvalov said in an interview: “When signing the Energy Charter agreement, it was initially agreed that some of its provisions would subsequently be changed. It was politically very important for the EU that Russia signed this document. We agreed that we would work together to make changes. If such amendments are made and we agree, in particular on the terms of the Transit Protocol, then it will be possible to begin the process of ratifying the agreement to the Energy Charter. At the same time, we always say that we share the principles set out in the political declaration of that time - the Energy Charter itself."

This is the first time that Russian participants in the energy dialogue have voiced a proposal to create a “different charter.” However, their European colleagues also had their own trump card. International Energy Agency spokesman Daniel Simmons said he has doubts about Gazprom's readiness to develop the production of the necessary volume of gas to meet growing demand. “We have no doubts about Gazprom’s resources, but the question comes down to time horizons,” he added, referring to the timeliness of investments in this area.

Mr. Medvedev's response to this hint was very evasive: “The emphasis is placed incorrectly; if we really need to invest, it should be in the development of the gas transportation system.” As evidence of Gazprom’s readiness to meet growing demand, the deputy chairman of the concern’s board cited a completely strange example. According to him, in the winter months of 2006, Gazprom reached an annualized daily production of 620 billion cubic meters of gas. That is, he explained, “the concern’s resource base is capable of producing 70 billion cubic meters of gas per year more than now, but this is not necessary, since this is dictated by the volume of the sales market.” And the fact that during these winter months both Russian and European consumers complained about short supplies of gas from Russia indicates that Gazprom was not quite coping with the sharply increased demand for fuel. The failures in Europe can, of course, be attributed to the unscrupulousness of the transit country in the person of Ukraine, which was engaged in unauthorized selection. This cannot explain the gas shortage on the Russian market. Perhaps no one knows what would have happened to the gas production and gas transportation systems, which worked not just at maximum capacity, but honestly, if the cold had lasted for another couple of weeks. At the very least, there are currently no guarantees that a “gas blackout” is impossible.

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Gas consumption in the Irkutsk region will be provided in the amount of 4 billion cubic meters per year within four years , TNK-BP Executive Director for Gas Project Development Viktor Vekselberg said in Berlin. “The first stage of development of Kovykta is associated with satisfying domestic consumption. In the Irkutsk region it is planned to create a consumption market from scratch through gas chemistry, energy, housing and communal services, small industries. I emphasize, from scratch,” he said, noting that the creation of the market is planned “together with the administration of the Irkutsk region, and therefore with the state, which is interested in the creation of new jobs, increased taxes, etc.” “The growth in domestic gas consumption will be enormous, we will be faced with very unexpected figures. The economy is developing successfully, the energy sector will increase consumption,” Mr. Vekselberg said. INTERFAX-AGI

Alexey GRIVACHS