OREANDA-NEWS. February 5, 2009. The Gazprom Headquarters keeps hosting the Board of Directors’ meeting.

Gazprom’s Board of Directors approved the work done by the Company to implement the Oil Business Strategy and entrusted the Management Committee with reporting on the progress in further implementation of the Strategy in 2010.

Background:

On September 27, 2006 the Board of Directors approved the Company’s Oil Business Strategy.

Pursuant to the Strategy, Gazprom will achieve the production level of 80 million tons by 2020.

In order to reach this level, the Company plans to work in the areas as follows:
bringing all the explored oil fields of Gazprom Neft onstream on a by-stage basis (with due regard of the company’s 50 per cent stake in Slavneft);
bringing Gazprom’s reserves onstream;
expanding the resource base.

In 2007 Gazprom Neft was renewing its long-term strategic targets and objectives with due consideration of the basic principles provided for in the Strategy. In February 2008 an extended meeting of the Gazprom Neft Management Committee considered and approved the petroleum company’s Strategic Development Concept till 2020.

Under the Concept, Gazprom Neft plans to increase oil production to 90-100 million tons per annum by 2020 with account of all the subsidiaries, fields owned by Gazprom, resource base expansion, new acquisitions in Russia and abroad.

By 2020 the company’s oil refining capacity is projected to reach 70-80 million tons per annum, the oil derivatives sales via the corporate network of filling stations is to be increased to 12 million tons per annum, the sales network is to grow to 5,000-5,500 filling stations.

In order to meet the above objectives, Gazprom Neft is intent on increasing its participation in production operations at fields in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug and East Siberia. Currently, the company is coordinating a detailed action plan to involve Gazprom Neft in the development of Gazprom’s oil assets. In particular, Gazprom Neft – Yamal has been set up to produce gas from the Novoportovskoye field.

The Omsk Refinery and Yaroslavnefteorgsintez are being upgraded in order to promote the development of the oil refining sector. In addition, a structure of the Moscow Refinery management was established. The structure will ensure settling the shareholders’ disputes and enhancing the effectiveness of the existing refinery development program.

In the oil production sector abroad Gazprom Neft has a strategic interest in Central Asia, Middle East (Iran, Iraq) and Latin America (Venezuela, Cuba), in the marketing sector –European countries, Asia-Pacific and the USA.

In addition, Gazprom Neft is strengthening its positions abroad in refining. In particular, on December 24, 2008 Gazprom Neft signed a purchase and sale agreement with the Serbian Government to acquire a 51 per cent stake in Serbia’s oil company NIS. The transaction has been completed so far.