Gazprom opposes foreign ownership of energy reserves: agencies

MOSCOW (AFP) – A top Gazprom executive voiced opposition on Wednesday to foreign ownership of Russian energy reserves, saying it could deprive Russian consumers of much-needed natural gas, news agencies reported.

“We do not like foreign companies developing reserves,” Alexander Ananenkov, deputy chairman of state-owned Gazprom, was quoted by Interfax and RIA Novosti news agencies as saying during a visit to Novosibirsk.


His comments came as the Russian state continued to reassert control over the lucrative oil and gas sector, large parts of which were privatised and sold to foreign companies under former president Boris Yeltsin.

Ananenkov accused two projects with foreign participation — the Sakhalin-1 and Sakhalin-2 fields in far eastern Russia — of wanting to sell natural gas exclusively to international markets and therefore cheating Russian consumers.

“These producers, companies with foreign participation, do not want to do anything for consumers in the Russian Far East. They just want to sell gas to foreign countries,” Ananenkov said.

AFP