The head of Shell gas filling stations in Russian Andrei Arzamastsev recently sat down for an interview with Russian journalists. In the interview, he stated that Shell has set a target to open 40 new gas stations in Russia within the next two years.

According to Arzamastsev, 10 filling stations will open in the Central and the Northwestern regions or the Federal District this year. Next year, an additional 20 to 30 stations will be launched. The goal for Shell is to open a total of 150 filling stations in the country. The number of stations currently in operation is 100. The addition of extra stations will lead to an increase of 50 percent in the overall number of Shell stations operating in Russia.

While Arzamastsev shared some details of Shell’s plan with the media, he made no comments about what funds were required to execute the project.

Shell has plans to develop a chain of filling stations that will be set up in other regions of Russia, aside from the Northwest and the Central Federal Districts. When asked about the details of its plans for other areas of Russia, Arzamastsev stated that although Shell did have plans to initiate projects in new areas, disclosing specific cities and numbers would be premature. Shell is now working on part two of its chain project.

As of now, Shell is considering locations at which the new stations can be built and is buying land. While the company’s current focus is on the Central and the Northwest regions, with time, it is expected to shift.

Additionally, Shell also has plans to develop the market of natural gas motor fuel. The head of the Moscow office of Shell Igor Ignatyev stated that Shell has plans to develop both liquefied natural gas (LNG) and compressed natural gas (CNG) stations. He went on to say that these are two different technologies that are built on differing scientific principles.

While, these technologies are widely being used in the United States and Canada, there is no market in Russia for these two forms of fuel, and it has yet to be developed.

Igor Ignatyev also informed the media that Shell is currently interested in collaborating with major oil and gas companies in Russia, including Rosneft and Gazprom, to develop LNG and CNG fuel. He added that CNG could be utilized as a fuel for public transportation and LNG could be used to fuel heavy-duty vehicles, in the same manner as it is used in the U.S. and Canada.

In June of 2013, Shell launched its 100th filling station in Russia. The station was opened in Moscow. The station offers to its customers four major fuel types, including diesel, V – power, V – power racing, and Ai – 95. In addition, the Shell convenience store at the station has over 1,500 goods.

Novatek to maintain control in deciding on new partners for Yamal LNG

Leonid Mikhelson, the CEO of Novatek, recently held a press conference where he disclosed to the media that his company was thinking about attracting new partners for the Yamal LNG project in a way that would allow the company to maintain control over the venture. Mr. Mikhelson also said that while no specific partners have been chosen as of yet, the announcement as to who the partners would be will definitely be made this year.

Mr. Mikhelson also said that Novatek will keep a 51-percent stake in the project so that it could remain feasible. At the same time, Novatek’s CEO indicated that he ideally wanted up to 55 percent or 56 percent to remain within the ownership of the company for better results.

When asked about the details on any of the partners, Mr. Mikhelson once again said that he had no answer to this question, but could only say that no American companies will be given partnership.

Currently, the Yamal LNG project is operated by Novatek, which has an 80-percent stake, and Total, which has a 20-percent share. In the near term, the number of shareholders is expected to increase by at least two more companies. Novatek believes additional stakeholders are needed to make the project more successful.

Total had a stake of about 15.7 percent in Novatek itself at the start of 2013, as the French oil major stated at a recent oil and gas conference that took place in Paris. Total became a shareholder in Novatek in April 2011, but its stake was only about 12 percent at that time. However, with new goals and a vision for achieving collaborative efforts with major gas producers in Russia, the French major was lead to increase its stakes to over 19.4 percent over a period of three years.

According to the latest reports, the biggest shareholder of Novatek is Mr. Mikhelson, who is the holder of a 24.76-percent stake. Gennady Timchenko’s Volga Resources closely follows with 23.49 percent, while Gazprom has a 9.99-percent stake. The free float percentage is about 26.6 percent.