Moscow plans 450MW gas-fired plant

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MOSCOW, June 18 (UPI) -- The Moscow power utility and Gazprom subsidiary Mosenergo announced plans Wednesday to build a gas-fired power plant to deliver electricity to the city.

Gazprom chief Alexei Miller said the $500 million project is only in the initial stages of development.

"This is the first step of our investment program. We plan to commission 3,500 megawatts of new capacity in the Moscow region," he said.

Gazprom plans to move away from gas generators and switch to coal-fired plants, however. The move is reflected in the energy giant's recent merger proposal with coal producer Siberian Coal Energy Co., SUEK, the Russian news channel Russia Today reported.

"We will cooperate with SUEK in the sphere of technology and also in transferring some of Gazprom's power assets to coal. But we will fulfill these projects in accordance with market principles," company spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov said.