18:30, 26 December 2009 | GMT +5
Russia to start eastward oil, gas shipments via Arctic in 2010
NOVO-OGARYOVO. December 26. KAZINFORM Sovcomflot, Russia's largest shipping company, will start delivering Russian oil and gas in the eastern direction of its Arctic shipping lane in the summer, the company head said on Saturday; Kazinform refers to RIA Novosti.

At a meeting with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Sergei Frank said Sovcomflot was planning to launch pilot shipments of Russian hydrocarbon reserves in the eastern direction of the Northern Sea Route, from the Atlantic to the Pacific via Russia's Arctic, later this year.
"We will make such pilot deliveries in the summer," he said.
Frank said the goal was to expand oil and gas markets for domestic energy producers and enter new ones.
The businessman said though shipments via the Arctic had been made before, the scale and cargoes were different; Kazinform cites RIA Novosti.
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