Gazprom gas production, withdrawals from storage still below winter peak - Miller
NOVO-OGAREVO. Jan 20 (Interfax) - Gazprom is providing stable supplies of gas to consumers in the current fall-winter season, Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller said at a meeting with President Vladimir Putin.
"Gas supplies to Russian consumers are being conducted stably," he said, noting that Gazprom injected the maximum possible gas volumes into underground storage before the onset of cold weather.
"That said, we are proceeding through the winter at below climatic norms nationwide. October, November and December were cold for Gazprom consumers, but the company, in order to proceed through the fall-winter maximum, has not even attained peak capacity utilization volumes for production or withdrawals from storage," Miller said.
Gazprom continued gasification work in the Russian regions in 2016. "Over 1,800 kilometers of gas pipelines were built, Gasification was conducted in more than 270 Russian localities and as of January 1, 2017, the average level of gasification with pipeline gas nationwide was 67.2%," Miller said. "We will continue this work in 2017," he said.
In response to a follow-up question from Putin, Miller said Gazprom plans to maintain the volume and pace of gasification, adding that Gazprom spent 25 billion rubles for that purpose in 2016.
"We could spend more, but this depends on the regions, because the gasification program is carried out in the framework of the synchronization of programs [between the company and the regions]," he said.
"But the volumes of gasification will be no less than those figures we indicated for 2016," Miller said.