Gazprom-Lukoil gas deal

Gazprom shall buy natural gas from fields in West Siberia and the Caspian Sea.Russia's biggest independent oil producer Lukoil will supply 8.35 billion cubic metres of gas to Gazprom's 160,000-kilometre gas pipeline network next year from its Bolshekhetskaya field. The deal is an indication that Gazprom, which was earlier accused of not giving independent producers fair access to its pipelines, is loosening its grip on the country's pipeline system.