On the outcome of working meeting between Alexey Miller and Rimantas Shidlauskas
Release
A working meeting took place in the central office of Gazprom yesterday between the Chairman of the Management Committee of the Company Alexey Miller and the Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of Lithuania to Russia Rimantas Shidlauskas.
The parties positively evaluated the cooperation of two countries in the gas sphere. Russian natural gas deliveries to Lithuania have been increased by 30% during the last five years. The volume of the “blue fuel” delivery will grow from 2.4 bcm in 2002 to 2.9 bcm in 2003. Lithuanian partners fulfill punctually all financial obligations.
A. Miller and R. Shidlauskas discussed the topics of gas transit to Kaliningrad and expansion of the Lithuanian gas transmission network. The participants of the meeting broached the subject of the bid for privatization of Lietuvos dujos (Lithuanian gas company) and privatization of the Kaunas thermal electric power station.
Background
In the start of 2002 the government of Lithuania made a decision on privatization of the national gas transmission company Lietuvos dujos. At the first stage of privatization 34% of the company’s stock was sold to a strategic foreign investor (the consortium of German companies Ruhrgas and E.On) in June 2002. On June 5, 2002 the government of Lithuania approved a program of sale of the second package of Lietuvos dujos shares to a gas supplier to the Republic. Gazprom turned out to be the sole claimant to the package of shares. Gazprom made a preliminary purchase offer on September 26, 2002. The dead line for submission of final offers to the government of Lithuania by was set on February 28, 2003.
Information Directorate, OAO Gazprom