The delegation of OAD "Gazprom", represented by the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mr. Alexey Miller, visited Serbia earlier today, and had working meetings with the President of the Republic of Serbia, Mr. Tomislav Nikolić, and the Prime Minister, Ivica Dačić. The parties discussed the level of Russian-Serbian cooperation in the field of energy, with a special focus on the implementation of the "South Stream" Project. It was highlighted that, on 21 February, the Serbian National Assembly granted a special status to this gas pipeline. The adopted law will facilitate the procedures needed for a successful project implementation and, among other things, simplify the process of land plot acquisition for gas pipeline construction. The long-term Agreement on Delivery of Russian Gas to the Republic of Serbia, in the volume of 1.5 billion cubic meters per year for the period of 10 years was signed in the presence of the Prime Minister, Mr. Ivica Dačić. The gas will be transported via the existing route, whereas in the future, "South Stream" gas pipeline will be used. The meeting with the First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense of the Republic of Serbia, Mr. Aleksandar Vučić was also held during the visit. The negotiating parties discussed the current situation and future perspectives for implementation of bilateral projects. It was noted that the joint development of the Serbian oil and gas infrastructure will not only enable a better energy security of the country, but also intensify the overall level of economic development of the Republic. Mr. Alexey Miller visited the first petrol station under the Gazprom brand in Europe, which was recently opened in Belgrade, and the modernized Pancevo Oil Refinery as well. In addition to these activities, Mr. Alexey Miller also held the meeting related to the business operations of "NIS" j.s.c. A special focus was given to the current state of affairs and the plans for development of Company’s processing and energy complexes. "Today, "Gazprom" and Serbia have affirmed the strategic status of the bilateral cooperation in the field of oil and gas. The long-term agreement was signed and Serbia received assurances for gas delivery and a good price. A successful implementation of our joint projects in the field of oil production and refining and subsurface storage strengthens our partnership. The "South Stream" Project is currently the largest investment project in Europe, which will be implemented together with Serbian companies and will fully meet Serbia’s prospective energy demands. We currently consider new power generation projects, which might become the next step in developing our strategic partnership” - said Mr. Alexey Miller. Information In 2012, the "Gazoprom Group" shipped 1.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas into Serbia. State-owned company "Srbijagas" performs transportation, distribution, and storage of natural gas on the territory of Serbia. In order to diversify the routes of export deliveries of natural gas, OAD "Gazprom" is implementing the project of gas pipeline construction through the waters of Black Sea into the countries of Southern and Central Europe "South Stream". With the aim of implementing the overland part of the project, international agreements have been signed with Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary, Greece, Slovenia, and Croatia. In November 2009, a joint engineering company South Stream Serbia AG was registered. OAD "Gazprom" owns 51% share in the company, and "Srbijagas" Public Enterprise owns- 49%. A ceremonial opening of "Banatski Dvor" subsurface gas storage was held on 21 November 2011. The subsurface storage is one of the largest facilities for gas storage in the South-East Europe. The active storage capacity is 450 million cubic meters of gas, and the maximum daily capacity is 5 million cubic meters. In October 2012, the final positive decision on investment was passed for "South Stream" Project in the territory of Serbia. In February 2013, the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia adopted the Law on Public Interest and Special Expropriation and Permitting Procedures for Construction of the "South Stream". In January 2008, OAD "Gazprom Neft" signed an Agreement on Terms and Conditions for Purchase of the Controlling Interest (51%) in the State-owned Company "Naftna industija Srbije" (now - NIS j.s.c.). NIS j.s.c. is one of the largest vertically integrated energy companies in the South-East Europe. It refines oil, sells and distributes petroleum products, produces hydrocarbon on the territories of Serbia and Angola, develops projects in the fields of petrochemisty, traditional and alternative energy. The Company's production volume amounts to around 1.7 million tons of oil per year. The Company owns refineries in Pancevo and Novi Sad, with a total capacity of 7.3 million tons per year. NIS has its own retail network (around 300 petrol stations and oil storages), and it is the leading supplier of the Serbian market with petroleum products, given the fact that its production meets 85% of total demand for petroleum products in the country. From 2009 until this day, the total scope of investment of OAD "Gazprom Neft" into the development of NIS j.s.c. has amounted to 2 billion Euros.
