ARMROSGASPROM TO INVEST 1.4BLN AMD IN ABOVYAN GAS STORAGE

ARKA
Feb 28, 2008

YEREVAN, February 28. /ARKA/. The ArmRosgasprom Company plans to
invest 1.4bln AMD in the Abovyan underground gas storage in 2008. The
ArmRosgasprom press service reports that the current capacity of the
gas storage is 110mln cubic meters of gas, and 80mln cubic meters
are stored now.

The renovation work is supposed to increase the capacity of the gas
storage to 28mln cubic meters, says the report.

The funs are to be directed to the construction of a new underground
reservoir with a capacity 1.5 times as much as that of the largest
reservoir operated now. The construction project is to last for five
years, and the new reservoir is to be put into operation in 2011.

Specialists say that the gas storage will be designed for holding
at least 150mln cubic meters of gas by the end of 2011. The issue of
modernizing the compressor room is to be settled later.

Under ArmRosgasprom’s investment project, a total of 2,662.7mln AMD
are to be directed to the modernization of the Abovyan underground
gas storage.

The investments will also be directed to the construction of a
salt-water reservoir.

The Abovyan gas storage regulates the seasonal gas consumption by
Armenia’s industrial sector and supplies gas to the country’s most
important gas consumers.

The Abovyan gas storage is one of the principal elements of Armenia’s
gas transmission system ensuing the country’s energy security. It
was constructed in 1962 on rock salt deposits at a depth of 800-1,000
meters.

The gas storage is designed for 110mln cubic meters of gas, which is
sufficient to supply gas to the major consumers for 30-45 days.

The ArmRosGasprom Company holds a monopoly of gas supply and
distribution on Armenia’s market. The company was founded in 1997,
and its capital currently totals $580mln. The company’s stockholders
are Gasprom (57.59%), RA Ministry of Energy (34.7%) and the ITERA
oil and gas company (7.71%).