Speech by Alexey Miller at “Global Gas Markets: Energy Policy and Energy Security” Panel Session held as part of St. Petersburg International Economic Forum

One of the highest priorities in Russia's gas export and marketing strategy is establishing its own southern corridor for gas exports to Europe, in competition with the EU-backed project.

Nord Stream 2 AG signed financing agreements for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project with ENGIE, OMV, Shell, Uniper and Wintershall.

Ukraine's transit of Russian oil for exports to Europe in March rose 42% year on year to 1.25 million mt, state oil shipper UkrTransNafta said

Ukraine has been urged to finalise gas sector reforms by Janez Kopac, director of Energy Community that regroups EU and non-EU states in Europe.

Russian state gas exporter Gazprom, which supplies around a third of the EU's gas, with much coming via Ukraine, is keen for Nord Stream 2 to be built by 2019, when it must renegotiate gas transit fees with Kiev.

Qatar, the world's biggest exporter of LNG, pledged almost $6.2bn worth of investment in Britain on Monday in a show of support, as UK Prime Minister Theresa May begins the formal process of negotiating a separation settlement with the European Union.

ConocoPhillips (COP.N) on Wednesday agreed to sell oil sands and western Canadian natural gas assets to Cenovus Energy Inc (CVE.TO) for C$17.7 billion ($13.3 billion), making it the latest international oil major to pull back from a region where high costs and low crude prices have made it hard for large companies to make an acceptable return.

Total petroleum deliveries moved up by 1.2 percent from the prior year to nearly 19.3 million barrels per day in January 2017. These were the highest January deliveries in nine years, since 2008.

Ukrainian state monopoly supplier Naftogaz Ukrainy has issued letters of credit under the loan agreement with Citi and Deutsche Bank secured by the World Bank. They total €220mn ($231mn) and will be used this month to buy gas from European suppliers selected through the World Bank’s auctions, it said March 1. It is planned to buy up to 1.1bn m³, with payment due in April upon completion of the relevant gas deliveries to Ukraine.