Alexey Miller, Gazprom's Management Committee Chairman approved the Regulations on gas delivery scheduling for Russia and the United Gas Transmission System (UGTS).

The Regulations prescribe that the Management Committee Chairman should receive coordinated 3-year projects on gas balance for Russia and the Russian UGTS, pursuant to a timetable of Gazprom's 3-year social and economic development plan and budget drafting. Under the Document, coordinated annual gas delivery schedules for Russia and the UGTS should be submitted to the Management Committee Chairman within 55 days before the start of a new year.

In addition, the Regulations determine the timing of submitting to Gazprom's relevant departments the following documentation indispensable for scheduling gas deliveries throughout Russia and via the UGTS:

• Amount of Gazprom's gas supplies to Russian consumers
• Volume of Russian gas procurement and distribution by independent gas producers
• Proposals on Gazprom's gas export and import balance drafting
• Amount of Gazprom's gas procurement and distribution
• Extent of independent gas producers' gas transmission via the UGTS
• Independent gas producers' gas delivery schedules
• Coordinated forecast of Gazprom's gas production
• Coordinated forecast of independent gas producers' gas extraction and deliveries to the UGTS
• Other documents

At the same time, the Regulations stipulate for gas deliveries throughout Russia and via the UGTS to be scheduled primarily taking into account the existing natural gas demand in Russia. The Document will make it possible to enhance control over scheduling and effecting gas deliveries as well as to make this process more transparent. Besides that, the Document envisages orderly planning of gas distribution to end-use consumers not only for the upcoming year but for a long-term prospective, as well.

The Regulations are intended to strengthen Gazprom's vertical integration by closer linking all business cycles, from gas production and transmission to processing and marketing to end-use consumers.

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