Total sends love greeting to Gazprom
French energy major Total hopes its deal with Gazprom over the Shtokman field in the Barents Sea will lead to more joint projects, a top executive told The Associated Press.
-We hope that through this innovative contract and with the special relation we now have with Gazprom there will be more opportunities for us, Total’s Arnaud Breuillac said. He said that the Shtokman deal resembles a production sharing agreement, except that the foreign partners are not allowed ownership of the lisence. At the same time, the official responsible for the company’s operations in Central Europe reiterated Total’s desire for continued Shtokman cooperation after the first project phase. According to their agreements with Gazprom from last year, Total and partner StatoilHydro are engaged in the project only in the first development phase, after which Gazprom will take over the sole responsibility for the project. In the interview, Mr. Breuillac also said that the Shtokman agreement is a sign of Russian authorities’ committment to stable investment conditions for foreign companies. Total and StatoilHydro have 25 and 24 percent in the company with Gazprom holding 51 percent. The operating company will plan, finance and build the first stage of the Shtokman development and the rigs, platforms and processing facilities for 25 years, after which shares revert to Gazprom.
