PUTIN DENIES RUSSIA’S JOINING OPEC-STYLE GAS CARTEL
PanARMENIAN.Net
11.11.2008 17:40 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin sought to ease
fears Tuesday over the possibility of Russia joining an Opec-style
cartel of gas exporting countries, he said in talks with his Egyptian
counterpart Ahmed Nazif. "We support this idea. But we know about
apprehensions and even fears voiced by certain energy consumers,"
Putin was quoted by news agency Interfax as saying. "I wish to state
once and for all: there are no grounds for such fears."
He said energy exporting countries should coordinate policy to ensure
"uninterrupted" energy supplies to consumers, but added that Russia
would not forgo its independence to sign a cartel agreement with
other states.
"None of us is going to cede part of our sovereignty in making
decisions," Putin noted. The possibility a gas cartel was previously
discussed among Russia, Qatar and Iran.
Putin met with the Egyptian prime minister, as the latter was paying
a four-day visit to Moscow.
"I regard Egypt as a leading country of the Arab world," Putin told
his counterpart Tuesday.
Experts say there was little substance in modeling a gas cartel on
OPEC because gas contracts are often signed over the long-term and
differ significantly in export-methods from country to country.
"It’s like the Russian fairytale of three very different animals
pulling the cart," said Thane Gustafson, a senior director at
consultancy Cambridge Energy Research Associates.
Russian exports almost exclusively through pipelines, Qatar mostly
deals in liquefied natural gas (LNG), while Iran is not going to be
an exporter at all, Gustafson said.
Major world gas exporters such as Norway and Algeria have so far also
stayed aloof from the planned gas forum.
Putin’s comments came one day after he said the country had to act
to bolster oil prices hit by the global economic crisis. His comments
suggested that Russia was aiming to become a swing producer.
"As one of the major exporters and producers of oil and petroleum
products, Russia cannot sit out from the formulation of global prices
for this natural resource," Putin was quoted by local media as saying
Monday. "We have to develop a full set of measures that will enable
us to actively influence the market," he said, DPA reports.