Gazprom continues talks with China on gas deliveries
MOSCOW. March 16 (Interfax) - Gazprom and Chinese CNPC have held another round of talks on gas deliveries to China.
Gazprom Deputy CEO Alexander Medvedev met with CNPC Vice President Wang Dong Jin for the commercial negotiations, Gazprom said in a statement.
They discussed deliveries on the western route (the Altai project). "Alexander Medvedev and Wang Ding Jin noted the progress in the agreement on the technical parameters of the pipeline," the statement says.
"The project's financial issues were examined at the meeting, as were the commercial parameters of future deliveries of Russian natural gas to the Chinese market, which are slated to commence in 2015," Gazprom said.
Gazprom did not mention any progress on the price of the deliveries.
Under the intergovernmental agreements on the gas deliveries, the gas purchase agreement is to be signed before July 1, 2011.
Gazprom and CNPC signed the framework agreement covering the main terms of the natural gas deliveries in October 2009. In December that year they signed the basic agreement.
The sides are also discussing having CNPC provide advance payment for the gas deliveries to be used to finance construction of the Altai pipeline. Gazprom might receive a loan comparable to the $25-billion loan Rosneft and Transneft received in 2009 for future oil deliveries.
RTS$#&: GAZP, ROSN, TRNF
