The Gazprom Management Committee took note of the information about the prospects for the expansion of the gas supply and gas infrastructure network in Russian regions through 2030.
It was noted that Gazprom's goal is to ensure the stepwise completion of gas infrastructure expansion by 2030, thus creating the necessary conditions for making the benefits of natural gas – a cost-effective, eco-friendly and comfortable for domestic use type of fuel – available to as many Russian residents as possible.
At present, Gazprom is implementing the programs for gas supply and gas infrastructure expansion in 72 constituent entities of the Russian Federation for 2021–2025. The work has already yielded considerable results: in 2021–2023, the possibility of gas grid connection was provided to over 224,000 apartments and households, as well as over 1,000 boiler houses in 1,200 localities. According to preliminary data, as of January 1, 2024, the gas penetration level across Russia reached 73.8 per cent, i. e. 89 per cent out of 100 per cent of the technically possible gas grid expansion nationwide.
Within the localities already covered by the gas grid, Gazprom performs additional gas grid expansion, i.e. lays gas pipelines to the boundaries of private households and to boiler houses of medical facilities and educational entities at no cost to the consumers.
In 2024, Gazprom accelerates the pace of the work on gas infrastructure and additional gas grid expansion in Russian regions. For that purpose, the Company has allocated a record-high amount of funds, namely, RUB 270.3 billion (which is RUB 33.5 billion above the level of 2023). Throughout the year, it is planned to bring gas to over 700 localities, which is 1.7 times more than in the preceding year. To that end, Gazprom builds gas pipeline branches with gas distribution stations (GDSs), as well as inter-settlement and intra-settlement gas pipelines, and conducts renovation and technical upgrade of the existing GDSs. For instance, in the first quarter of 2024, a part of said facilities has already been built – gas pipelines have reached cities, villages and rural settlements in 16 regions across Russia.
At present, a total of 1.2 million households are provided with the technical possibility of getting connected to gas networks as part of additional gas grid expansion.
In addition, Gazprom is actively engaged in the implementation of the objective set by Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, to extend the additional gas grid expansion program to cover the households in gardeners' non-commercial partnerships that are not connected to gas, but are situated within localities already covered by the gas grid. The Company has taken part in the assessment of the general potential of such households to participate in the additional gas grid expansion program. Gazprom jointly with the relevant ministries and agencies elaborates proposals to amend the current legislation in order to establish a mechanism of including gardeners' non-commercial partnerships into the additional gas grid expansion program.
The Company continues the work to expand the gas infrastructure in a number of regions and localities that are still not connected to pipeline gas. These include, for instance, the Republic of Buryatia, the Transbaikal Territory, the Murmansk Region, the urban territory of Tynda (the Amur Region), the cities of Birobidzhan (the Jewish Autonomous Region) and Krasnoyarsk (the Krasnoyarsk Territory).
The issue of the prospects for the expansion of the gas supply and gas infrastructure network in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation through 2030 will be submitted for consideration by the Gazprom Board of Directors.