Today Irkutsk has hosted a joint coordinating meeting of Gazprom and the Irkutsk Oblast Administration working groups for the regional gas supply and gasification. The meeting was moderated by Bogdan Budzulyak, Head of the Gas Transportation, Underground Storage and Utilization Department and Yury Paranichev, Acting Governor of the Irkutsk Oblast.

The participants examined the progress with the Action Plan for the Irkutsk Oblast gas supply and gasification approved by Gazprom and the regional authorities.

The parties also examined the progress with the provision of the Government of the Russian Federation on socioeconomic development of the Irkutsk Oblast as of May 10, 2007.

The meeting also discussed the Schedule Plan for the synchronization of activities to execute the regional gasification program over 2007 to 2008. Particularly, the meeting discussed the gasification of the Bratsk industrial hub, which is a top-priority gasification facility.

The parties examined the development prospects for associated gas generating capacities in the Ust-Kutsko-Kirensky complex in the northern Irkutsk Oblast.

The parties pointed to the active work done to identify opportunities for Irkutskenergo’s power generation facilities to convert to natural gas.

The participants underscored that purposeful work had been done on the execution of the General Scheme for gas supply to and gasification of the Irkutsk Oblast. The parties expressed a common opinion that the implementation of the General Scheme was an important direction of Gazprom and the Irkutsk Oblast work aimed at executing the major provisions of the Concept for the regional socioeconomic development approved by the Government of the Russian Federation at the meeting of May 10, 2007.

Special attention was paid to the commissioning of top priority gas supply facilities and preparation of consumers for gas supply.

As a result of the meeting the parties adjusted the Schedule Plan on synchronization for 2007. The Mayor of the Bratsk area was tasked with speeding up preparations for gasification of the settlement of Zyaba.

Reference:

The General Scheme for gas supply and gasification of the Irkutsk Oblast was developed by Gazprom pursuant to the Agreement of gasification between Gazprom and the Irkutsk Oblast Administration. The General Scheme was approved by the Alexander Tishanin, Governor of the Irkutsk Oblast in December 2005. The Scheme stipulates a comprehensive development of the regional gas production, transportation and supply system based on the local hydrocarbon resources. Gazprom was appointed as a company-operator for the General Scheme implementation. Gas supply start-up is slated for 2007. At present Tomsktransgaz constructs a gas main from the Bratsk gas condensate field to the town of Bratsk.

In the Irkutsk Oblast Gazprom holds two licenses for subsoil use aimed at geological survey of the eastern and western blocks of the Yuzhno-Kovyktinskaya area.

On February 8, 2007, the Federal Agency for subsoil use approved the fact of discovery of the Chikanskoye gas condensate field by Gazprom in the Irkutsk Oblast. Chikanskoye’s C1 reserves are estimated at 16 bcm of gas and 1 mln t of gas condensate, with C2 gas and gas condensate exceeding 81 bcm and 5 mln t accordingly.