Russ Oil-Gas

MOSCOW, November 21 (RIA Novosti) - Gazprom Export, the export arm of Russian energy giant Gazprom, has extended a contract to supply natural gas to Slovakia until 2028, Gazprom and Slovensky plynarensky priemysel a.s. (SPP) said in a joint press release. Gazprom Export also signed a deal with Eustream (SPP's subsidiary transiting gas via Slovakia) to transport gas for the same period - until 2028. Under the agreements, which kick in as of January 1, 2009, by 2028, SPP will buy about 130 billion cubic meters of gas while Eustream will transport approximately 1 trillion cubic meters. In April 1997, Gazprom and SPP signed an array of agreements under which the Slovak gas company received a discount of $5 per 1,000 cubic meters of Russian natural gas. In return, a Gazprom-Slovak joint venture was formed to transit Russian gas via Slovakia to the European Union. In July 2002, the European Commission approved the purchase of a 49% stake in SPP by Gazprom, Ruhrgas and Gaz de France.