(Adds detail)
MOSCOW, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin
has ordered the government to work out proposals by March 1 on
annual supplies of 10 billion cubic metres of natural gas
exports to Europe by energy giant Rosneft, Interfax
news agency reported on Tuesday.
Rosneft, Russia's largest oil producer in which BP
owns an almost 20% stake, has long sought to make inroads into
the lucrative natural gas market in Europe. Currently,
Kremlin-controlled Gazprom holds exclusive rights to
export Russian natural gas via pipelines.
The head of Rosneft, Igor Sechin, told Putin in October
that if the company were to begin exporting gas, it would help
stabilise the European gas market and support Russia's budget.
Excerpts of the October meeting aired on state TV channel
Rossiya 24 did not show Putin's response to Sechin's plea for
the right to export 10 bcm of gas per year to Europe.
Natural gas prices in the region have soared this year amid
tight supplies and rising demand as economies recover from the
pandemic-induced slump.
(Reporting by Anton Kolodyazhnyy; writing by Vladimir
Soldatkin; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)