Russian-French friendship at Shtokman
Fillion, Putin (government.ru)
In their meeting in the Black Sea resort of Sochi this Saturday, both Russia’s Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and his French counterpart Francois Fillion highlighted the important role of the Shtokman gas field in bilateral relations.
In a press conference following the meeting, Mr. Putin said that French oil company Total has confirmed that it will want to take part in all development phases of the huge Shtokman field, one of the biggest offshore gas fields in the world, the Russian governement website reports.
-This shows that big French business do see Russia as a long-term partner , Putin added. Total has a 25 percent stake in the Shtokman Development Company, the enterprise which is to develop the 3,7 trillion cubic meter field. The rest of the company is controlled by Gazprom (51%) and StatoilHydro (24%).
The meeting comes as relations between East and West in Europe are at its most chilly for many years. France is this half year chairing the European Council, and has also been mediating actively in the crisis between Russia and Georgia.
