Russia to Pay in Currency and Goods for Turkmen Gas

President Vladimir Putin has said that Russia will pay for its purchases of Turkmen gas half in currency and half in Russian products. On Thursday, the presidents of Russia and Turkmenistan inked an agreement on co-operation in the gas sector on results of their negotiations in the Kremlin.

At the signing ceremony, the Russian head of state emphasised that the term of the agreement will expire in 2028.

In turn, head of the Gazprom company Alexei Miller specified that the mentioned settlement procedure would be effective for the next three years to come. Turkmen gas will be bought for 44 dollars per cubic metre, he reported.

According to Miller, the Russian gas concern Gazprom plans to buy from Turkmenia up to 6 billion cubic metres in 2004. By 2006, Gazprom will increase gas purchases to 10 billion and by 2009 up to 80 billion cubic metres of Turkmen gas.