PUTIN
GLENEAGLES, Scotland:
RUSSIAN PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin promised Friday that his country will increase its oil exports and said energy policy would be a key theme of the Russia's G-8 presidency in 2006.
"Russia is constantly increasing the supply to world markets," he told reporters after the conclusion of the Gleneagles summit of G-8 leaders. "We will increase our supply of crude and work to develop nuclear energy."
Russia currently produces about 470 million metric tons a year, of which 230 million metric tons are exported. Putin said this figure would rise to between 250 and 270 million metric tons. A metric ton is the equivalent of about 6.9 barrels of oil. Putin said Russia would increase its gas production by 40 billion cubic metres by 2010 - gas market.
The president gave no timeline for the increase, but described a series of projects under way to augment Russia's energy transport capacity - its perpetual Achilles heel.
Russia's capacity to export its abundant oil and natural gas supplies has been hobbled by its limited and obsolete pipeline system. To boost that capacity, it will have to invest in infrastructure upgrades, in particular in the area of liquefied gas transport and completion of oil pipelines to terminals where large tankers could be accommodated.
Putin said he had promised his fellow G-8 leaders that Moscow would do its utmost to provide enough transportation infrastructure to supply energy to its partners, both pipelines and railways.
