MOSCOW, June 27. /ITAR-TASS/. Gas sales to the CIS countries will continue falling in 2014 because of the Ukrainian crisis, but the overall export figures will be good, Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller said at an annual shareholder meeting.
“Our production capacities are in demand this year as well. Our latest data show that now, in summer, our European customers buy gas in amounts which are more typical for winter. We have all the reasons to forecast good export figures for this year,” Miller said.
“Lower natural gas supplies to the CIS countries in 2013 were mainly connected with falling consumption in Ukraine. The well known Ukrainian events give us all reason to forecast the continuation of this trend.”
South Stream construction
According to Miller, Gazprom and its partners in the South Stream pipeline construction are doing their best to finish work in accordance with the schedule despite threats of delaying or even freezing of the project. Supplies must start before 2016, Miller said.
Last week, the European Commission said that the laying of South Stream must be suspended until the project is fully adjusted to the EU legislation.
The South Stream pipeline will carry Russian gas to the EU bypassing Ukraine. Gas will be pumped to the Bulgaria’s Black Sea port of Varna before extending overland through Serbia, Hungary, and Slovenia to supply gas to Western Europe via Italy and Austria. The pipeline’s capacity amounts to 63 billion cubic meters.
Miller separately said that the resources of 17 Arctic deposits discovered by Gazprom in 2013 amounted to 17.3 trillion cubic meters of gas, while crude and gas condensate reserves stood at 1.3 billion tons, he said.