Gazprom and Shell have signed an Agreement of Strategic Cooperation for a five-year period, Gazprom says in a press release. The signing ceremony was held via a video link in the presence of Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Ben van Beurden, Chief Executive Officer of Royal Dutch Shell.
The newly signed document expands the interaction between the two companies. Particular attention will be given to such areas as research of energy markets, implementation of projects along the entire value chain, cooperation in digitalization of technologies, and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
Alexey Miller and Ben van Beurden reviewed the current achievements brought about by the cooperation between Gazprom and Shell. In particular, Sakhalin II was discussed. Last year, a record-high volume of liquefied natural gas – over 11.6 million tons – was produced and shipped to customers under the project.
Special mention was made of the European energy sector decarbonization. It was noted that natural gas, due to its eco-friendliness, can play a significant role in meeting Europe's climate goals.
“Today, we have made a new step in the development of our cooperation. The very signing of the Agreement proves that our joint work has brought good results and that we establish ambitious goals for both the short term and the long term. Without any doubt, the experience we have accumulated guarantees us new future achievements,” said Alexey Miller.
Shell is a British-Dutch oil and gas holding company focused on hydrocarbon production, processing and marketing in more than 70 countries.
Gazprom and Shell are jointly engaged in the Sakhalin II project, which includes Russia's first LNG plant. The project operator of Sakhalin II is Sakhalin Energy (Gazprom – 50 per cent plus one share, Shell – 27.5 per cent minus one share, Mitsui & Co. Ltd – 12.5 per cent, and Mitsubishi Corporation – 10 per cent).
The previous Agreement of Strategic Cooperation between Gazprom and Shell was signed in 2015.