Abstract
Building a Eurasian energy empire required Gazprom’s expansion into Russia’s “near abroad”—the former Soviet republics besides Russia, often called “formerly Soviet countries,” or FSCs. This diverse group comprises the Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania), the eastern European states (Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova), the states of the trans-Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia), and the Central Asian states (Kazakhstan, Kirgizia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan). After the Soviet collapse in 1991, Gazprom lost control over energy assets in these countries: the new independent states got control of the extensive gas transportation infrastructure within their borders. This infrastructure served not only domestic gas consumption and distribution but also the transit of Russian gas export to Europe. Three Central Asian FSCs—Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan—also possessed in their territories significant gas fields that were of strategic importance to Gazprom because they served as reserves to make up for falling gas production in Russia itself. Ukraine and Azerbaijan also are gas producers. In the first decade of the twenty-first century, Gazprom made several concerted attempts to restore its control of the gas reserves, infrastructure, and markets in all of these countries.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Adyasov, Innokenty. 2010. “Uderzhit li Turkmeniya Suverenitet nad Svoimi Resursami?” [Will Turkmenistan retain control of its resources?] REGNUM, October 13, 2010 (www.regnum.ru/news/1335420.html).
Åslund, Anders. 2010. “Gazprom: Challenged Giant in Need of Reform.” In Russia after the Global Economic Crisis, edited by Anders Åslund, Sergei Guriev, and Andrew Kuchins, pp. 151–68. Washington, DC: Peterson Institute for International Economics.
BP. 2010. Statistical Database 2010. London: BP.
BP. 2012. Statistical Database 2012. London: BP.
Ericson, Richard. 2009. “Eurasian Natural Gas Pipelines: The Political Economy of Network Interdependence.” Eurasian Geography and Economics 50, no. 1: 28–57.
Gazprom. 2010. Gazprom in Figures, 2005–2009. Factbook. E-book. Moscow: OAO Gazprom (www.gazprom.com/f/posts/89/747450/gazprom-reference-figures-2005–2009-eng.pdf).
Gazprom. 2011. Gazprom in Figures, 2006–2010. Factbook. E-book. Moscow: OAO Gazprom (www.gazprom.com/f/posts/05/298369/gazprom-reference-figures-2006–2010-eng.pdf).
Gazprom. 2012. Gazprom in Figures, 2007–2011. Factbook. E-book. Moscow: OAO Gazprom (www.gazprom.com/f/posts/51/402390/gazprom-reference-figures-2007–2011-eng.pdf).
Grib, Natalya. 2009. Gazovii Imperator [Gas Emperor]. Moscow: Kommersant, EKSMO.
Hedenskog, Jacob, and Robert Larsson. 2007. Russian Leverage on the CIS and the Baltic States. Stockholm: Swedish Defense Research Agency.
Hromushin, Ivan. 2010. Gazprom—Silnye Pozitsii v Neprostye Vremena [Gazprom—Strong positions in hard times]. Gazprombank, Moscow (www.gazprombank.ru/upload/iblock/d97/gazprom_020810.pdf).
Kublik, Andrej. 2011. “PGNiG mo£e ju£ sprowadzaæ rosyjski gaz z Niemiec” [Poland will buy Russian gas from Germany]. Gazeta Wyborcza, November 2.
Loseva, Irina. 2011. “Gazovye Voiny s Belorussiey Zakoncheni” [Gas wars with Belarus are over]. Utro.Ru, November 22 (www.utro.ru/articles/2011/11/22/1012220.shtml).
Manenok, Tatyana. 2011. “Kakoi Budet Novaya Gazovaya Formula Dlya Belarusii?” [What will the new gas formula for Belarus ne?] Nashe Mnyeniye [Our Opinion] (online magazine), September 14 (http://nmnby.eu/news/express/3276.html).
Pirani, Simon, Jonathan Stern, and Katja Yafimava. 2010. “The April 2010 Russo-Ukrainian Gas Agreement and Its Implications for Europe.” Working Paper NG 42. Oxford, UK: Oxford University, Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, June.
Pshennik, Yuri. 2004. “Gazprom Calls the Tune: The Russian Monopolist Is Ready to Establish Control of All Gas in CIS Countries.” Economicheskaya Gazeta, January 13.
Shumilin, A. I. 2008. Energeticheskaya strategiya Rossii i SShA na Blizhnem Vostoke i v Tsentralnoy Azii [Energy strategy of Russia and the USA in the Middle East and Central Asia]. Moscow: Mezhdunarodnye Otnosheniya.
Smeenk, Tom. 2010. “Russian Gas for Europe: Creating Access and Choice.” Ph.D. dissertation, Riksuniverstiteit Groningen, International Energy Programme (http://irs.ub.rug.nl/ppn/327665017).
Smirnov, Sergey. 2009. “Gazovye Virazhi Turkmenii [Gas twists and turns in Turkmenistan].” Expert-Kazakhstan (online journal) 25, June 29 (http://expert.ru/forum/expert-articles/226)
Socor, Vladimir. 2009. “Strategic Implications of the Central Asia—China Gas Pipeline”. Eurasia Daily Monitor, December 16.
Solozobov, Yuri. 2007. “ ‘Gazprom’ v Gazotransportnikh Sistemakh Stran SNG” [“Gazprom” in gas transport systems of CIS countries]. Promyshlennye Vedomosti 10, October (www.promved.ru/articles/article.phtml?id=1288&nomer=47).
Voronova, Yevgenia. 2011. “Belorussia Poluchila Novuyu Skidku na Gaz” [Belarus has a new discount for gas]. Utro.ru, August 15 (www.utro.ru/2011/08/15/economics.shtml).
Wood Mackenzie. 2008. “‘Gazprom’ na Runkakh Stran SNG i Baltii: Konets ‘Sovyetskovo’ Tsenovovo Subsidirovaniya” [“Gazprom” on CIS and Baltic markets: The end of “Soviet” price subsidizing]. Upstream Insights (online journal) (www.woodmacresearch.com/languages/russian/GazpromsCISBalticmarketSep2008rus.pdf).
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2015 Andrey Vavilov and Georgy Trofimov
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Vavilov, A., Trofimov, G. (2015). The Struggle for Pipelines: Gazprom’s Attempts at Strategic Expansion in the “Near Abroad”. In: Vavilov, A. (eds) Gazprom. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137461100_5
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137461100_5
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-68999-6
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-46110-0
eBook Packages: Palgrave Economics & Finance CollectionEconomics and Finance (R0)