Russian oil and gas giant Gazprom has cornered the European market and is hungry for expansion in North America. Yesterday eight high level employees including chief executive Alexei Miller visited Alaska for discussions with state employees and ConocoPhillips representatives. A bold move when Russian-American relations are still taut from the five-day war in Georgia.
Gazprom’s last notable American discussions involved BP and ConocoPhillips’s Denali pipeline project to deliver natural gas from Alaska to the lower 48 states. At the same time, it expressed interest in a rival pipeline project by TransCanada to deliver gas to Alberta.
Yesterdays’ meetings were expected to continue pipeline discussions but instead Gazprom officials kept tight lipped, not discussing pipeline projects specifically. “They were talking very generically,” said Marty Rutherford, deputy commissioner of the state Department of Natural Resources. “They would love to partner with us and other firms.”
This vagueness carried through to discussions with Conocophillips, whose spokesman Charlie Rowton said by e-mail, “The focus of today’s conversation was not Denali, the Alaska Gas Pipeline, but other broad-based business opportunities.”.
Why the mystery? Gazprom has good experience in building and using gas pipelines in Far North environments similar to Alaska’s North Plane. Their experience would certainly improve confidence in pipeline construction and also provide a much needed opening in the North American markets for the Russian giant. Both parties win. But the political climate right now does not support millions, if not billions, of Russian capital being used to build American infrastructure.
Alaskan governer and vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin criticized Russian Prime Minister Vladmir Putin for “rearing his head” across the Alaska-Russia maritime border. Committing to a project might lead to political flack right now, but yesterday’s visit seems like a subtle reminder of Gazprom’s intent. By expressing their interest and support in Alaska, they are better prepared to make a move after November’s election.
“The timing is as interesting as the visit itself,” said Chris Weafer, chief strategist at UralSib Financial in Moscow. “Gazprom’s entire senior management goes into Sarah Palin’s backyard during a contentious election. There’s a message there.”
Given Gazprom’s ravenous international growth and huge amounts of capital, that message might be-Get ready America, we’re coming for you.
