Led by Alexander Ananenkov, Deputy Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, the Company’s delegation has commenced a business trip to the Northwestern region.

Today in Vyborg the delegation has visited the construction facilities of the Gryazovets – Vyborg gas pipeline that will convey natural gas into the Nord Stream gas pipeline.

The delegation visited a unique crossing being constructed under the Neva River as part of the Gryazovets – Vyborg gas pipeline project. The crossing is based on the microtunneling technique, which doesn’t cause a negative impact on the ecosystem of the river during construction and operation.

The delegation inspected the construction site of the Portovaya compressor station (CS) to become the starting point for gas supplies via the Nord Stream gas pipeline. The first-stage facilities of the CS will be brought onstream in 2011 and the capacity will be further increased to the level of 366 MW by the end of 2012 through staged expansion.

The delegation was also informed on the progress in constructing a wharf in the Dalnaya Bay to receive large and heavy cargoes. The wharf will start functioning in April 2010.

In Saint Petersburg Alexander Ananenkov held a meeting of the coordinating group responsible for the Gryazovets – Vyborg pipeline construction.

The meeting was attended by heads and experts from Gazprom’s specialized subdivisions, Gazprom invest Zapad, Yamalgazinvest, Gazprom komplektatsiya, Gazprom transgaz Ukhta, Gazprom transgaz Saint-Petersburg, Gazavtomatika, Giprospetsgaz and from the general contracting companies – Stroygazconsulting and Stroygazmontazh.

The meeting participants discussed the status of the gas pipeline construction, focusing on the pre-construction operations for the Portovaya CS and procurement of the necessary materials and equipment. The meeting noted that the Gryazovets – Vyborg pipeline construction was synchronized with the activities on the Nord Stream project and progressed according to the approved schedule.

Based on the meeting results Gazprom’s subdivisions, subsidiaries and contractors were tasked to continue the project execution within the prescribed deadlines.

Background:

The Nord Stream gas pipeline is a fundamentally new route for Russian gas exports to Europe. Nord Stream will run across the Baltic Sea from the Portovaya Bay (in the vicinity of Vyborg) to the German coast (in the vicinity of Greifswald). The gas pipeline length will be some 1,200 kilometers.

In order to connect Nord Stream to the Unified Gas Supply System of Russia, a new gas pipeline (Gryazovets – Vyborg) will be constructed in the Vologda and Leningrad Oblasts.

The linear section of the gas pipeline will stretch 917 kilometers. Seven compressor stations will operate along the gas pipeline: Gryazovetskaya, Sheksninskaya, Babaevskaya, Pikalevskaya, Volkhovskaya, Elizavetinskaya and Portovaya.

Located in the Portovaya Bay on the Russian coast of the Baltic Sea, the Portovaya CS will become a unique gas transmission facility with the capacity (366 MW) unparalleled in Russia. State-of-the-art equipment and technologies will be used for its construction.

By now, 597 kilometers of the line pipe out of 917 kilometers have been brought onstream. The remaining 320-kilometer-long section will be finalized in December 2010.