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Novatek: Russia may become global LNG leader in 10 years

Russia could be producing as much liquefied natural gas (LNG) as current world leader Qatar within 10 years as its state and private companies speed up projects, which could also help divert some gas away from Europe, a key Russian gas player said. Leonid Mikhelson, chief executive and co-owner of gas firm Novatek, said his own company was set to grow its gas output by 7-8 percent this year while output of liquids would rise by 40-50 percent as it launches new fields.

"In Russia, we have LNG projects being developed by us, Gazprom and Rosneft. It would be a mistake to think that all these projects will be competing with each other," Mikhelson said in an interview in Davos, Switzerland, in quotes cleared for publication on Monday. "Given the expansion of LNG markets, Russia could have twice as many projects as it has today and those volumes would still find their customers. On a 10-year horizon, Russia simply must build up to 80 million tonnes of LNG capacity," he said.

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