RT: Gazprom CEO: Shale gas not Russia's concern this century

While the booming ‘shale revolution’ is being increasingly criticized by environmentalists, Russia shouldn’t care too much about it, at least this century, says Gazprom Chief Executive Aleksandr Medvedev.

Has Russia misjudged and misinterpreted the shale revolution and is it being left behind by new rivals? What’s there for Russia in a ‘shale revolution’?

RT: Igor Sechin, chief executive of state oil company RosNeft and one of President Putin’s closest advisors says Gazprom was too late to realize the threat posed by the US shale gas, and Russia is now risks losing the race for the gas markets if it fails to act – do you feel like you’ve slept through the shale revolution?

ALEXANDR MEDVEDEV (AM): We always are monitoring all the modern tendencies in the gas and oil market, and other energy markets connected with gas and oil. It’s very strange to hear that we have missed the shale gas revolution. We’ve always been involved in accommodating our activities to the market realities, but I believe that it may be a nice word – “revolution” – which these tendencies influence the situation on the American gas market, and also, indirectly, have a certain influence European markets, but we are not sleeping, we have done what we believed necessary to be done to stay competitive.

RT: So you feel like Russia is not missing out on anything, as far as shale gas is concerned?

AM: First of all, I would not exaggerate the influence of the shale gas on our activity. Obviously, we should change the approach to the American market, because the target market for our Shtokman project was the North American market. Now, the US looks to be targeting to be self-sufficient, or even considering to export energy, but we are well prepared to stay competitive and the events of the current year are just confirming how we are restoring our competitiveness, which actually was not even damaged.  MORE