Russia, gas production in the first quarter of the year reached 196.9 billion cubic meters

Gas production in Russia in the first quarter of the year it reached 196.9 billion cubic meters, thus recording an increase of 9.4 percent compared to the previous year. The newspaper “Kommersant” made this known, citing its sources familiar with the statistics of the Russian Energy Ministry. In particular, last March the national companies active in the sector produced 65.4 billion cubic meters of gas, i.e. 7.9 percent compared to March 2023. In particular, the production of the energy group Gazprom in the first months of the year it grew by 13 percent annually, to 132 billion cubic meters.

Other large independent producers maintained production at a level close to the previous year. For example, Rosneft increased production by 1.5 percent, which amounted to 20 billion cubic meters, while Novatek recorded a decline of 2.6 percent, producing 20.8 cubic meters of gas.

According to “Kommersant”, the main driver of production growth in the first quarter for Novatek could have been its Arctic Lng-2 project at the Salmanovsk, in the Jamalo-Nenec region, but the company cannot yet start shipments of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) due to sanctions. LNG production under the project in February and March 2024 was 83 million cubic meters and 148 million cubic meters, respectively. Last January, when the company began producing LNG in trial mode, 250 million cubic meters were extracted.