Welcoming participants of the industry’s cornerstone event, Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller emphasised that the forum is one of the most authoritative platforms for discussion of the future of the global gas industry. He also noted that the choice of forum host city had preordained St. Petersburg’s status as a major international gas centre: “Over the past year, the role of St. Petersburg has gained tremendous prominence on the European and worldwide gas map. It has been the scene of important decision-making on construction of the Nord Stream II gas pipeline, the construction of an LNG terminal on the shores of the Gulf of Finland, and the holding of Russia’s first-ever gas auction.”

St. Petersburg Governor Georgy Poltavchenko added that the gas industry’s global leader, Gazprom, is one of the city’s strategic partners in terms of fostering an innovation-centred environment, developing the municipal economy and promoting urban improvements. “The forum will tackle the issues associated with the outlook for further expansion of the global gas industry, with special emphasis placed on international experience in development of the Arctic shelf. St. Petersburg is a centre for the promotion and implementation of innovative projects – including those involving Arctic shelf development.”

The packed business programme is being supplemented by its exhibition counterpart, with an area spanning more than 25,000 sq. metres serving as the backdrop for several major expositions: the International Specialised Exhibition “InGAS Stream – Innovations in the Gas Industry,” the International Specialised Exhibition “Gas-Motor Fuel,” and the International Specialised Exhibition of the Gas Industry and Gas-Facility Technology “ROS-GAS-EXPO.” What’s more, on the first day of the forum, the convention and exhibition centre’s fairgrounds were the finish line for the “Fill Up the Motors with Gas!” rally for vehicles running on natural gas.