Russia wary of USA shale gas boom

Russia is growing wary of the boom in shale gas in the United States, the latest speech from its Prime Minister Vladimir Putin suggests. The country’s President-elect told the State Duma, the […]

Russia is growing wary of the boom in shale gas in the United States, the latest speech from its Prime Minister Vladimir Putin suggests.

The country’s President-elect told the State Duma, the lower chamber of Russia’s parliament this week: “In the US, they are actively developing technologies to produce shale gas. This can seriously reshape the structure of hydrocarbons markets,” reported Platts. He added: “National energy companies, obviously, must respond to these challenges.”

Russia was the fourth largest gas producer and exporter in the world in 2010 according to the International Energy Agency’s World Energy Outlook 2011. But two of its largest oil and gas fields in West Siberia are in decline which could mean a rise in gas from the United States could be cause for concern.

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