Russian gas monopoly Gazprom said on April 15 the management committee reviewed the operating results of the company’s subsidiaries and organisations over the 2019–2020 autumn/winter period and discussed the measures to be taken for ensuring uninterrupted gas supplies to consumers.
“Gazprom fulfilled all of its obligations for providing domestic and foreign consumers with reliable gas supplies in the past winter, which was the warmest winter in recorded history in the area covered by Russia’s Unified Gas Supply System (UGSS),” Gazprom said in a press release. Preparation included carrying out preventive maintenance and repair works, inspecting facilities, and bringing gas production and transmission capacities onstream.
A crucial part of this work is the creation of required gas reserves in underground gas storage (UGS) facilities, Gazprom said, adding that this allows the company to supply consumers with additional amounts of gas within tight timeframes if gas demand skyrockets during a cold snap.
By the start of the 2019–2020 withdrawal season, the potential maximum daily deliverability of UGS facilities reached 843.3 million cubic metres, an all-time high for the domestic gas industry, Gazprom said, adding that the company plans to maintain this level in the upcoming heating season.
In order to ensure the reliable operation of the UGSS in the 2020–2021 autumn/winter period, Gazprom tasked the specialised structural units and subsidiaries to stockpile at least 72.322 billion cubic metres of working gas inventories in UGS facilities in Russia, 1.09 billion cubic metres in Belarus, and 0.091 billion cubic metres in Armenia by the next withdrawal season.
Gazprom said its subsidiaries should also develop the Basic Guidelines on preparing the facilities of Gazprom’s subsidiaries and organisations for the 2020–2021 autumn/winter period, and perform scheduled preventive maintenance and repairs at gas production, transmission, underground storage and processing facilities, as well as to prepare transport and specialized equipment for winter operations.
By the start of the 2019–2020 withdrawal season, Gazprom stockpiled 72.2 billion cubic meters of working gas inventories in UGS facilities in Russia, 1.09 billion cubic meters in Belarus, and 0.085 billion cubic meters in Armenia.
Meanwhile, Gazprom reviewed the programme for underground gas storage (UGS) facility development in Russia for 2020–2030. Consistent increases in deliverability and expansions of the UGS network are essential to this systematic work, Gazprom said, adding that UGS facilities form an integral part of Russia’s Unified Gas Supply System and can provide up to 22 per cent of Gazprom’s daily supplies and over 30 per cent during peak periods.
In the span of 10 years, Gazprom enhanced the potential maximum daily deliverability of the Russian UGS network at the season’s start by 36 per cent compared to the 2009–2010 withdrawal season. This indicator reached 843.3 million cubic meters, an all-time record for the Russian industry.
Work continues in this area: by the 2030–2031 withdrawal season, it is planned to raise daily deliverability by approximately 200 million cubic metres, Gazprom said.
Increasing the flexibility of the UGS system by creating peak storage facilities of relatively small volume but with high deliverability is among Gazprom’s key tasks in the area of underground storage for 2020–2030, Gazprom said. As UGS facilities created in rock salt deposits provide this opportunity, Gazprom currently continues expanding the Kaliningradskoye and Volgogradskoye UGS facilities and designing the Novomoskovskoye UGS facility.
As part of UGS network development, Gazprom said the company will soon begin building the Shatrovskoye UGS facility in the Kurgan Region, and the Arbuzovskoye UGS facility is being designed in the Republic of Tatarstan. The Company’s existing UGS facilities are expected to undergo renovations and technological upgrades.
In the future, Gazprom plans to establish new UGS facilities in the Northwestern, Siberian and Far Eastern Federal Districts. At present, geological exploration is underway at several prospective sites.
