Thursday 13 August 2009

Scary Gazprom - "With All The Trimmings"

From time to time we like to have a little peek inside the scary world of Gazprom, the company that is going to hold Europe to ransom unless we build ruinous windfarms and nuclear power stations. What a painful dilemma for us all, eh ?

The thing is, scary Gazprom badly needs the money (just like we need the gas, which is why there’s an intelligent deal to be done ...) But Big G also likes to announce impressive projects, all over the world, which is how it imagines big companies behave (it secretly models itself on Shell). If you believed all their press releases, you’d imagine they were a Real Global Player. How gratifying.

But in the end, as we’ve noted before, Gazprom never spends any cash of its own.

Here’s a gem. In order to be seen as a big European downstream player in its own right, complete with fanciful market-share targets, Gazprom announced several big gas storage projects across Europe, which don’t come cheap. Would they put up, or would they …?

Well, it turns out that there are safety issues preventing them from going ahead with their flagship German project, and as their man says, Sicherheit geht vor. Yes indeed: safety first.

Which is a real shame for the good burghers of Wittstock – no Nimbys they – who were hoping for “... Ein Erdgasspeicheraufschluss mit allem Drum und Dran – with all the trimmings !

Sorry chaps: as we said to the Nigerians

ND

5 comments:

Demetrius said...

I can hardly bear to think about the implications of the coming shambles on power supply and the economy.

CityUnslicker said...

great post Nick, cheers.

Anonymous said...

Nick, though not directly related to G, and since it seems you cover these type of thangs,

I thought you might like to read this, in relation to coming food prices

James Higham said...

There may be safety issues but Gazprom still pack a punch and they are still source oil. They bugger up the delivery but the original algorithm still applies.

roym said...

luckily theres a new tkmaxx opening near by. better stock up on some new jumpers and thermals