MOSCOW, October 20. /TASS/. Shale gas production becomes unprofitable if oil prices fell, Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller said in an interview with Rossiya-24 television.

"Very much attention is paid to oil price forecasts. Highly reputed oil price forecasts are present. Even if the real Brent price somehow approaches these reputed forecasts, then it will be found out that the revenue-generating capacity of shale gas is completely different. The question then arises, who will deal with that in general and who will produce it? And wherefrom will it appear in the market?" Miller said. Gazprom attentively monitors oil price forecasts, he noted.

The chief executive of Gazprom also cast a doubt on Europe’s prospects of substituting Russian deliveries by shale and liquefied natural gas.

"The shale gas. So attempts are being made to fully substitute by shale gas, LNG and so on. But it does not work out, it has not worked out thus far. You know, it is a big question whether it works out at all," Miller added.

Gazprom has no plans so far to develop shale gas production because Russia is provided with gas reserves of conventional fields.