Translated material
Arctic expedition
Dmitry Medvedev will visit Norway and Denmark
“He loves '70s rock. He is a skilled amateur photographer. He has a sense of humor. He is very knowledgeable about complex economic, legal and political issues. Could he be the man to solve the 40-year-old Norwegian-Russian problem in the north? And will Ole Bjoerndalen (the legendary Norwegian biathlete - Ed. ) force him to compete at the Olympic Winter Games in Sochi in 2014? - this is how the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten prefaced an exclusive interview given by Dmitry Medvedev on the eve of his state visit to this northern country.However, the interview itself is not about music and sports, but about politics and economics. Energy, prospects for shelf delimitation in the Barents Sea and future presidential elections in Russia became the main topics of conversation. “I think that this is not very correct in interstate relations - to expect some kind of concessions, concessions, discounts, as is sometimes expected, at least from Russia, taking into account the fact that we are a country rich in natural resources. It seems to me that relations between our countries should be pragmatic and mutually beneficial,” this is how the Russian leader outlined the tone of the future conversation.
The history of Russian-Norwegian relations has been going on for a thousand years, since the time of Yaroslav the Wise. Negotiations on the continental shelf have not been going on for so long, since 1970, but 40 years is also a long time for diplomacy. The disputed shelf area between the two lines totals 175 thousand square meters. km, of which 155 thousand sq. km are located in the Barents Sea (this is 11% of its total area). The visit starting today will also not put an end to this “not the most difficult, but the most ambitious issue in bilateral relations,” as Mr. Medvedev described it. “There is one area in the southern part of the Barents Sea on which negotiations are ongoing, we are counting on progress in delimiting that small area that still remains completely unagreed,” said his assistant Sergei Prikhodko.
An equally complex geopolitical issue is the situation around the Spitsbergen archipelago. In 1920, an international treaty was signed in Paris, according to which Norwegian sovereignty was established over Spitsbergen. All other parties to the agreement received equal rights to economic activities on the archipelago. Since 1932, the Russian state trust Arktikugol has been operating on the archipelago, which has land plots with a total area of 251 square meters. km and 23 mining allotments on a temporary use basis. At the Barentsburg mine, Russia annually produces about 300-350 thousand tons of coal. In addition, Russia is engaged in fishing in the waters of Spitsbergen. However, in 1977, by decree of the King of Norway, a 200-mile protective zone was introduced around Spitsbergen. Russia does not recognize this zone, since the right to designate it does not stem from the 1920 agreement. In 1978, a protocol was signed on temporary fishing rules in the adjacent area of the Barents Sea. In 2009, Russia and Norway extended this temporary agreement for one year - until July 1, 2010.
“Already today, the polar countries are taking active steps to expand their research, economic and even military presence in the Arctic zone. At the same time, unfortunately, there are attempts to limit Russia’s access to the development and development of Arctic fields, which, of course, is unacceptable from a legal point of view and unfair from the point of view of the geographical location and the very history of our country,” said Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, speaking at Security Council meeting in mid-March 2010.
The largest business project of the two countries should be the development of the Shtokman gas condensate field. It is located in the center of the Barents Sea shelf zone at a distance of about 600 km northeast of Murmansk. According to experts, the field is considered one of the largest in the world, as it contains about 3.8 trillion cubic meters of natural gas and about 37 million tons of gas condensate. The license for prospecting, geological study and production of gas and gas condensate at the Shtokman field is held by Gazprom Neft Shelf LLC. In February 2008, Gazprom, the French Total and the Norwegian StatoilHydro signed a shareholder agreement to create a special purpose company, Shtokman Development, to carry out the design, development, construction, financing and operation of the first phase of development of the Shtokman field. However, the project was postponed several times. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on April 17 that an investment decision on the Shtokman project should be made in the spring of 2011, after which work on developing the field would begin immediately. The Prime Minister emphasized that the implementation of the project “has not been cancelled”; preparatory work has not stopped and is ongoing at the moment.
Dmitry Medvedev joked that the suspension of the project is due to the fact that he himself ceased to be the chairman of the board of directors of Gazprom. In reality, the delay is due to choosing the right moment to begin such a large project. “And here we need to take into account all the components - both financial readiness and project readiness. But here our position does not change. We are interested in starting to implement this project with the participation of our partners. Whether this will be done in 2010 or 2011 is not so important. We understand that 2009 was a very difficult year for all European countries, for Russia, and for our companies too. 2010 is the year of recovery from the crisis. Therefore, maybe you just need to find a good point and start working from there,” the Russian president told Norwegian journalists.
As previously reported, the board of directors of Shtokman Development AG decided to allocate as a separate stage within the first phase of the project the construction of a start-up complex for the supply of pipeline gas, which will include an offshore production complex, an onshore pipeline and a gas treatment unit. The final investment decision on pipeline gas production is planned to be made in March 2011, and on LNG production by the end of the same year. According to the company's shareholders, this approach will make it possible to begin gas production for supply via pipeline in 2016 and ensure LNG production in 2017.
After negotiations in Oslo, Dmitry Medvedev will continue his trip to Scandinavia and visit Denmark. He already came to Copenhagen last December when he took part in the UN climate change conference. But now his visit has state status. The Danish side expects to discuss cooperation in trade and investment areas during the state visit of the Russian president, Danish Ambassador to Russia Per Carlsen told reporters. According to him, areas such as energy saving, agriculture and trade are of particular interest to Danish investors. In Copenhagen they also expect to discuss the difficulties faced by Danish investors in Russia.