Russia can realistically expect to extract approximately 645-665 billion cubic meters of natural gas by the year 2010

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

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Given optimal conditions in socioeconomic development, Russia can realistically expect to extract approximately 645-665 billion cubic meters of natural gas by the year 2010 and approximately 710-730 billion cubic meters by 2020. Those are estimates from Rinat Murzin, head of the Department of Fuel and Energy Resources of Russia's Natural Resources Ministry. Given a moderate pace of social development, gas extraction would be considerably less-up to 635 billion cubic meters a year by 2010 and up to 682 billion cubic meters by 2020, Murzin said. His worst-case scenario foresees a falling-off of gas extractions in the near future, with a stable level achieved only toward 2010 (at a level of 555-560 billion cubic meters a year). An increase in extractions would then be expected only toward 2020 and then only at the level of the early 1990s (610 billion cubic meters). At the same time, only a significant increase in supplies of hydrocarbons can assure the doubling of national output that President Vladimir Putin is aiming for, Murzin declared. He also said, the press office reported, that the situation with respect to known reserves of natural gas is much better than that with respect to oil. According to Gazprom specialists, its extractions are not expected to exceed 530-545 billion cubic meters a year. Thus, other companies that produce natural gas will have to sharply raise their output and, by 2020, reach a yearly production level of up to 170 billion cubic meters of gas, Murzin was quoted as saying. Current estimates of known reserves of gas show Russia as the world leader with 32% of world reserves and 30% of total world extractions. In all, Russia's gas holdings are estimated at 236 trillion cubic meters, of which 160 trillion are in land areas and 76 trillion are within the continental shelf. Extractions to date come to 6% of this, or 13.5 trillion cubic meters. Known reserves make up 20% (48 trillion cubic meters) of the total, with still unexplored gas coming to 68% of the total (157.5 trillion cubic meters).

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