Prospects for further partnership in the fuel and energy sector were discussed on Monday at a meeting between President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and Chairman of the Board of Gazprom Alexei Miller.

 As Serdar Berdimuhamedov emphasized, our country, which has an impressive hydrocarbon potential, is aimed at the progressive development of mutually beneficial ties with foreign partners in such a strategic area as the fuel and energy complex.

 The President also noted that Turkmenistan is aimed at a radical modernization of the national fuel and energy complex, the active introduction of advanced technologies and innovative developments, and an increase in the efficiency of the mining and processing sectors.  All this provides ample opportunities for strengthening and diversifying business contacts.

 During the meeting, the head of Turkmenistan and the chairman of the board of Gazprom exchanged views on the prospects for cooperation, taking into account many years of positive experience and solid potential.  In this context, issues related to the purchase of Turkmen gas by the Russian holding company under the current contract and the expansion of partnership in this area on a long-term basis were discussed.

As the President of Turkmenistan noted, large infrastructure projects in the oil and gas industry being implemented in our country create favorable prerequisites for successful cooperation.  Along with the extraction of hydrocarbons, great importance is attached to building up the capacities of the gas and petrochemical industry with a focus on the production of high-quality competitive products that are in high demand on the world market.  At the same time, the development of "green" energy, the practical use of environmentally friendly renewable energy sources is defined as an important aspect.

 As Serdar Berdimuhamedov emphasized, Turkmenistan is open to intensifying cooperation with long-standing partners and is ready to discuss new formats of mutually beneficial cooperation.

 In turn, Alksey Miller noted that the Russian holding will continue to follow its obligations.

 Recall that in July 2019, the State Concern «Turkmengas» and Gazprom signed a contract for the purchase of natural gas for a period of five years.  According to the contract, the volume of supplies of Turkmen gas is up to 5.5 billion cubic meters per year.

 In December last year, Russian Ambassador to Turkmenistan Alexander Blokhin told reporters that in 2021 the volume of gas purchased by Gazprom in Turkmenistan is likely to double to about 10 billion cubic meters.  At the same time, the diplomat added that the volume of supplies in 2022 will be decided during negotiations between Gazprom and Turkmengas.