OREANDA-NEWS. On October 23, at the Gazprom Headquarters, Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee and Alexander Konovalov, Plenipotentiary of the President of the Russian Federation in the Volga Federal District (VFD) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), the Gazprom press service reported.

The MoU stipulates priority cooperation directions in the field of gas supply development and gasification of the Russian Federation constituents of the Volga Federal District (VFD). The parties agreed on mutual cooperation in executing the regional development programs in the electric power industry, implementing gas saving technologies and equipment, expanding gas utilization as motor fuel as well as improving the legislation of the Russian Federation constituents of the VFD, land and subsoil utilization, licensing, pricing, taxation and other issues affecting business activity of gas companies.

The Volga Federal District (VFD) consists of 14 Russian Federation constituents: Bashkortostan Republic, Mari El Republic, Mordovia, Tatarstan, Udmurtia, Chuvashia, Kirov Oblast, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Orenburg Oblast, Perm Krai, Penza Oblast, Samara Oblast, Saratov Oblast and Ulyanovsk Oblast.

Gazprom signed Agreements of cooperation with 14 Russian Federation constituents of the VFD. Gazprom also signed Gasification Accords with 11 regions of the VFD.The average gasification level of the VFD is at 75.4 per cent including 84 per cent in towns and cities and 56.3 per cent in rural area. The average gasification rates in Russia are at 58, 64, and 40 per cent, respectively.

The highest gasification levels are at 98.6 per cent in the Republic of Tatarstan, 90.4 per cent in the Samara Oblast, 87.5 per cent in the Orenburg Oblast. The lowest level is at 28.3 per cent in the Kirov Oblast.