PARIS, Nov. 30 (UPI) -- Officers from Russian energy giant Gazprom discussed developments in the Shtokman natural gas field with officers from French supermajor Total.
Gazprom chief Alexei Miller met with Christophe de Margerie, the chief executive officer of Total, for a working visit in Paris to discuss a series of joint energy efforts.
Both sides discussed the first stage of developments for the Shtokman field and pending investment decision slates for 2010, Gazprom announced.
Construction of the first drilling rig for the Shtokman gas and condensate field in the Barents Sea is slated for the fourth quarter of 2010.
Total and StatoilHydro, now Statoil, signed a shareholder agreement in 2008 on a special-purpose company tasked with implementing the engineering, development, construction, financing and operation of the first phase for Shtokman's development.
The Shtokman field is one of the largest in the world. It is expected to produce as much as 794 billion cubic feet of natural gas and more than 200,000 tons of gas condensate per year in the initial stages of development.
The Total deal comes as Gazprom and French energy company EDF signed a memorandum of understanding for the possible French involvement in the South Stream gas pipeline for Europe.
