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Russia unlikely to join natural gas cartel - lawmaker

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A senior member of Russia's upper house of parliament said Tuesday an international natural gas organization could be created eventually, but Russia was unlikely to join such a body.
MOSCOW, February 6 (RIA Novosti) - A senior member of Russia's upper house of parliament said Tuesday an international natural gas organization could be created eventually, but Russia was unlikely to join such a body.

Iran proposed to Russia in late January establishing "a cooperation organization in the gas sector similar to OPEC." The Russian president said the idea was worth considering, a response some experts said was calculated to influence Europe's attitude to Russian energy supplies.

"Iran has proposed to Russia setting up a gas equivalent of OPEC," said Mikhail Margelov, head of the Federation Council's international affairs committee. "But my prediction is that we are unlikely to become a member of a gas OPEC."

"By not joining a [gas] OPEC we would preserve our freedom of action. Russia needs to be able to maneuver freely on the global natural gas market," Margelov said.

Margelov's opinion reflects the position of some Russian experts and officials, who have called the proposal political, and argued that regulating gas production and fixing the price would be difficult, as gas supplies are largely regulated by long-term contracts at present.

President Vladimir Putin welcomed the idea at an annual news conference with the Russian and foreign media at the beginning of the month, saying that such an organization could coordinate policies in the gas sphere to ensure uninterrupted supplies, but should not fix prices like the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

"A 'gas OPEC' is an interesting idea. We will think about it," Putin said.

"At the first stage, we agree with Iranian experts, partners and some other countries that produce and supply hydrocarbons to world markets in large volumes. We are already trying to coordinate our actions to develop markets and intend to do so in the future," the president said.

Russia's image as a reliable energy supplier has been marred in the last two years over pricing rows with Ukraine and Belarus, which resulted in a brief disruption of gas and oil exports to the European Union. Moscow has also clashed with the EU over its reluctance to sign an energy charter giving access to its export pipelines.

Margelov said gas would be central on the agenda of President Putin's tour of Persian Gulf countries, including major energy producers Saudi Arabia and Qatar, in mid-February.

Russia and Saudi Arabia are in talks on the Mideast nation's initiative to develop its gas sector with Russia's assistance. The total value of the projects was estimated at $20-25 billion.

Contacts between Qatar, which has the world's third-largest gas reserves of 11.2 trillion cubic meters, and Russia's Gazprom, the world's largest gas producer, have intensified during the last few years of Putin's presidency.

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