Today the Gazprom Headquarters has hosted a working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee and Vladimir Chub, Governor of the Rostov Oblast.

The parties discussed the implementation of an Agreement of Cooperation between Gazprom and the Rostov Oblast.

A focus was placed on regional gas supply and gasification matters as well as on the progress with the repayment of the regional gas debt. The meeting underscored that the Rostov Oblast Administration was active in gasifying population centres and clearing existing arrears.

Alexey Miller and Vladimir Chub also discussed issues with regard to the construction and commissioning in 2007 of a branch pipeline to the North Caucuses - Centre gas main with a view to achieve higher reliability of gas supply to the Kuibyshev District of the Rostov Oblast.

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Gazprom and the Rostov Oblast Administration signed the five-year Agreement of Cooperation in September 2002.

In 2006 Gazprom supplied regional consumers with nearly 6.9 bcm of gas and roughly the same volumes are slated for this year.

Within 2006 the gas arrears of the Rostov Oblast have decreased RUR 311.9 mln to RUR 362.46 mln as of January 1, 2007. This year’s gas deliveries are paid for at 101.6 per cent. Power generation and industrial companies pay for gas in advance. The bulk of the debt is owed by the residential sector.

Natural gas penetration in the residential sector of the Rostov Oblast makes up 64.8 per cent including 76.8 per cent in cities & towns and 38.7 per cent in rural areas. The same figures throughout Russia average 53, 60 and 34 per cent, respectively.

Between 2003 and 2005 Gazprom invested more than RUR 256 mln to gasify the Rostov Oblast, with over RUR 527 mln committed for these purposes in 2006 and some RUR 530 mln slated for 2007. On its part, the Rostov Oblast Administration is also actively involved in regional gasification constructing over the past four years gas distribution networks worth RUR 2,287 bln invested by local authorities.