A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Sergey Levchenko, Governor of the Irkutsk Region, took place today in St. Petersburg.

The parties highlighted the strategic nature of the ongoing cooperation. Gazprom continues to make extensive efforts in the region to shape the Irkutsk gas production center on the basis of the Kovyktinskoye field.

Work is proceeding on schedule as the field is being prepared for commercial production. Specifically, geological exploration is taking place and industrial sites for drilling rigs are being set up along with the required road infrastructure. The Company plans to construct seven production wells at Kovyktinskoye before the end of this year. Natural gas from the field will start flowing into the Power of Siberia gas pipeline in late 2022.

It was noted that Gazprom is considering an option to build a small-scale LNG production facility at the field. This will allow the Company to replace diesel fuel with natural gas – the most eco-friendly and cost-effective type of fuel – for drilling operations.

The meeting participants also discussed issues related to gas grid expansion and NGV infrastructure development in the Irkutsk Region.