Eric Watkins
Senior Correspondent
LOS ANGELES, Aug 8 -- Italy's Economic Development Minister Pierluigi Bersani wants the European Union to take action against a planned linkup between Russia's OAO Gazprom and Algeria's Sonatrach, citing concerns that such a partnership could adversely affect European gas prices.
"The agreement between the two largest gas suppliers to Europe confirms the worry [over] the European gas supply system, and Italy's in particular, because of the dependence on a limited number of suppliers," Bersani said in a letter to European Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs.
Sonatrach on Aug 4 signed memorandums of understanding with Gazprom in which it said it envisions the possibility of exchanging assets in the exploration and production sphere, the creation of joint ventures, and participation in tenders to explore and extract oil and gas.
The Sonatrach-Gazprom MOU also details information exchanges about projects, including LNG developments, the optimization of gas supplies to market, research activities, professional training, and enhancement of employee qualifications at the two companies.
Bersani said the EU needs more coordination between its energy and foreign policies in its dealing with gas producer countries because the cooperation between Gazprom and Sonatrach could affect supply.
Contact Eric Watkins at [email protected].
