MOSCOW, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Russia's three new liquefiednatural gas projects will find a niche in a growing Asianmarketplace, but there is no call to break Gazprom's monopoly on pipeline gas exports, Energy Minister AlexanderNovak told Reuters on Tuesday.
President Vladimir Putin on Monday signed off on changes torules on gas exports and foreign trade, enabling No.2 gasproducer Novatek and top oil firm Rosneft tolaunch LNG projects.
"As of now, we don't see such a need," Novak said in aninterview in answer to a question on whether Gazprom might loseits control over exports via pipeline.
He added that allowing new players or projects to export LNG"will be discussed later based on the market situation and theneed to build plants."
Russia wants to double its share in the global LNG market by2020 from 4.5 percent. Gazprom and Royal Dutch Shell own Russia's only LNG plant, on the Pacific island of Sakhalin, and Gazprom plans a second plant in Vladivostok.
Novak said that Gazprom still planned to sign a deal to shipgas to China via a yet-to-be-built pipeline by year-end, asearlier planned.