BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

18/05/2007

Gazprom, Beltransgaz postpone signing deal on gas transportation JV

MOSCOW, May 18 (Prime-Tass) -- Russia's natural gas monopoly Gazprom and Belarus' state-owned gas pipeline monopoly Beltransgaz have postponed signing an agreement to set up a gas transportation joint venture, Sergei Kupriyanov, Gazprom's spokesman, said Friday.

Gazprom was expected to sign the agreement to buy a 50% stake in Beltransgaz on Friday.

"The signing of the agreement to buy Beltransgaz' shares will take place not on Friday, but later," Kupriyanov said.

Gazprom expects the agreement to be signed before June 1, Kupriyanov said.

On Friday, Gazprom's delegation, headed by Deputy CEO Valery Golubev, will arrive in Minsk to discuss some remaining issues in connection with the deal, Kupriyanov added.

In December 2006, Gazprom and Beltransgaz signed a preliminary deal, under which Beltransgaz' pipelines were expected to be transferred to a joint venture of the two companies. Gazprom and Beltransgaz plan to acquire 50% in the venture each.

Under the deal, the venture is scheduled to be set up before June 1. Gazprom is expected to buy its stake in the joint venture for U.S. $2.5 billion by June 1, 2010. Gazprom is expected to buy four 12.5% stakes for $625 million each, in four stages in 2007-2010.

Gazprom's board of directors approved the deal in April, and Beltransgaz' shareholders approved it in May.

Gazprom has been trying to buy an interest in Belarusian gas pipelines since 2002.

Source:

http://www.prime-tass.com/news/show.asp?topicid=68&id=420527