BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

02/10/2007

Belarusian Gas-Pipeline Operator Gets New Head

Last week, the supervisory board of the Beltranshaz gas-transport company approved Uladzimir Mayorau as the general director of the company, Belapan reported on October 1. President Alyaksandr Lukashenka fired Belatranshaz's former chief, Dzmitry Kazakou, along with the heads of other major state oil and gas companies in July, as Belarusian officials were holding talks at Gazprom headquarters in Moscow over an unpaid gas debt of some $500 million (see "RFE/RL Newsline," July 24, 2007). In addition, the Beltranshaz board named the company's eight-member management, which will include a representative of Russia's Gazprom, Dmitry Annyuk. Under an agreement signed in Moscow on December 31, 2006, Gazprom was to acquire a 50 percent stake worth $2.5 billion in Beltranshaz by June 1, 2010, to form a joint gas-transport company. Gazprom is to pay for the stake in four equal installments between 2007 and 2010. Earlier this year, Gazprom acquired the first 12.5 percent stake in Beltranshaz for $625 million. JM

Source:

http://www.rferl.org/newsline/2007/10/3-cee/cee-021007.asp