On June 4, 2010, Amsterdam hosted a meeting of the Coordinating Committee for Sci-Tech Cooperation between Gazprom and Gasunie chaired by Vlada Rusakova, Member of the Management Committee, Head of the Strategic Development Department of Gazprom and Pieter Trienekens, Member of the Executive Board, Director of Participations and Business Development of Gasunie.

Heads of profile units of Gazprom Administration and it’s subsidiaries – OAO Gazprom promgaz , OOO NIIgazekonomika, as well as project managers of Gasunie took part in the work of the Coordinating Committee.

The parties discussed the results of the Program for Sci-Tech Cooperation between Gazprom and Gasunie for the period of 2007–2009.

In particular, members of the Coordinating Committee considered the aspects of the mutually beneficial cooperation in the development of facilities for transportation and underground gas storage in a liberalized gas market in the EU.

The meeting participants also pointed out the perspective of building a pan-European multi-level information-analytical system that integrates the interaction of control centers to manage gas transportation systems in the current economic conditions.

At the meeting the parties also discussed the prospect of creating underground gas storage facilities in the Netherlands, as well as technical, economic and legal aspects of production and transportation of biogas as a renewable resource.

Based on the meeting results, the Program for Sci-Tech Cooperation between Gazprom and Gasunie for 2010–2012 was approved.

Background:

Gasunie is a European natural gas transportation and infrastructure company. Gasunie network ranks among the largest high-pressure gas pipeline grids in Europe, consisting of over 15,000 km of pipelines in the Netherlands and northern Germany and approximately 1,300 gas receiving stations. The annual throughput capacity of the gas network totals some 125 billion cubic meters. Gasunie offers transportation services via its subsidiaries Gas Transport Services B.V. in the Netherlands and Gasunie Deutschland in Germany. In addition, the company offers other services in the gas infrastructure sector including natural gas and LNG storage.

On November 6, 2007 Gazprom and Gasunie signed the Umbrella Agreement on joint participation in the Nord Stream and BBL gas pipeline projects. On June 10, 2008  Gasunie was added into the Nord Stream AG shareholders register as a new shareholder and obtained a 9 per cent stake in this joint venture.

On December 7, 2007 Gazprom and Gasunie signed the Agreement on Sci-Tech Cooperation.