Russian Gas

Will There Be Enough Investment?

Author(s): Daniel Simmons, Isabel Murray
Editor(s): Matthias Neumann, Robert Orttung, Jeronim Perovic, Heiko Pleines, Hans-Henning Schröder
Series: Russian Analytical Digest (RAD)
Issue: 27
Pages: 2-5
Publisher(s): Center for Security Studies (CSS), ETH Zurich; Research Centre for East European Studies, University of Bremen
Publication Year: 2007

In the following piece we outline some of the major challenges facing the gas sector in Russia and focus on where some of the potential upsides are to be found. While we remain concerned about the overall level of investment in Russian upstream and transportation, the potential of the independent gas producers to rise to the challenge seems strong given the right supporting policy measures. The Russian government seems to be moving in the right direction with regard to domestic pricing policy and third party access to the pipeline system, yet reliance on imported gas from Central Asia is likely to increase the risks to security over the medium term. Our concerns on investment need to be seen within the context of our overall concern about global levels of investment, in upstream gas, pipelines and other infrastructure and even in the burgeoning liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry (see the IEA's Natural Gas Market Review 2007)

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