Putin sees "huge potential" in Russian-US energy cooperation

Moscow (Platts)--19Sep2005

Russia's president Vladimir Putin Friday said he saw a "huge potential"
in the Russian-US energy cooperation, which is now only represented by
negligible exports of Russia's energy to the US market, according to the
Kremlin's official web site. 

     "Only negligible part of Russian energy reached the US economy. Under
various estimates, it is just a little over 2% of crude, only 0.3% of oil
products and just the first supply of [liquefied] gas. We have a great
potential," Putin said at the meeting with representatives of US oil majors in
Washington.     

     Putin met with ConocoPhillips CEO Jim Mulva, Chevron CEO Dave O'Reilly,
outgoing ExxonMobil CEO Lee Raymond and incoming CEO Rex Tillerson.

     Putin noted that relations between US and Russian companies were "gaining
momentum," which was of benefit to the US economy and energy consumers. 

     Putin's meeting with US energy majors took place just hours after Russian
gas giant Gazprom unveiled a shortlist of five potential partners for
developing the huge Shtokman gas field in the Barents Sea. 

     Chevron and ConocoPhillips, as well as Statoil and Hydro of Norway and
France's Total will all contend to get into the final list of two or three
partners with whom Gazprom in the first quarter of 2006 will form a consortium
to tap the 3.2-trillion cu m (112.9 Tcf) field and arrange LNG supplies to
North America by 2010.

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