Industry and Energy

Industry and Energy

Azerbaijan launches gas export to Russia as from January 1

30 December 2009 14:56 (UTC +04:00)

The company said in a statement that it will pump 1.5 million cubic meters of gas a day to Russia at the initial phase.

According to the statement, technical specialists of Gazprom and Gazprom Export reviewed technical readiness for export and metering station in Azerbaijan on December 29-30.

â€œThey, together with SOCAR specialists, reviewed Shirvanovka gas metering station, confirmed the full readiness for launch of exports and concluded that all equipment and installations here are in line with the international standards. The parties signed a protocol confirming this,â€ said the statement.

On October 14, Rovnag Abdullayev, President of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), and Alexei Miller, chief executive of Gazprom of Russia, have today signed an agreement on the export of Azeri gas to Russia.

Under the agreement, Azerbaijan will pump at least 500 million cubic meters of gas a year from January 1, 2010, with supplies expected to increase in the future.

Rovnag Abdullayev said the volume of export is expected to reach 1 billion cubic meters soon.

According to the agreement, the price will be based on a special formula which Azerbaijan said â€œis normal and suits usâ€.