The Russian delegation met First Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Rustam Azimov and chairman of Uzbekneftegaz Ulugbek Nazarov, the Gazprom said in a statement.

The company said the sides held negotiations of gas transit through gas transit from territory and gas purchase in 2009.

Uzbekistan’s total natural gas resources exceed 6.25 trillion cubic meters, including 1.62 trillion cubic meters in commercial reserves. At present the country extracts 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year, including 5 billion cubic meters exported to Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. With first imports launched in May 2003, over 2005 Russia acquired some 8 billion cubic meters of Uzbek gas.

The Uzbekneftegaz National Holding Company and Gazprom signed an Agreement on strategic cooperation on 17 December 2002. In particular, the Agreement stipulates long-term procurement of Uzbek gas between 2003 and 2012, Gazprom’s involvement in natural gas production in Uzbekistan under the Production Sharing Agreement terms as well as cooperation in developing Uzbekistan’s gas transmission infrastructure and channeling Central Asian gas via the Republican territory. Cooperation under the PSA terms (effective from 14 April 2004) while renewing gas production from the Sakhpakhty field is a pilot joint project in the gas extraction sector. Said project stipulates 0.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas being extracted on an annual basis. This project helped to develop large project on exploration and development in Ustyurt region of Uzbekistan. The exploration of this region started in line with agreement from 25 January 2006.

On 5 February 2005 Gazprom and Joint-Stock Company Uztransgaz sealed a midterm Agreement on natural gas transmission via the Republic of Uzbekistan over 2006 to 2010, pursuing the objective of transporting Central Asian natural gas, primarily of Turkmen origins, by the Central Asia - Center (CAC) and Bukhara - Ural gas transmission networks running through Uzbekistan.