Message from the Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee
Dear friends,
For many years now, our Company has been working round the clock in the interests of people and industry both in Russia and around the world. Our philosophy is centered on maintaining a highly reliable gas supply, protecting nature and ensuring operational safety. Our Company has in place a responsible social policy that duly accounts for the interests of all who in any way engage with Gazprom.
We take care of our consumers. In the reporting year, just like every other year, we fully upheld all commitments made to them, having exported 179.4 bcm of gas to non-FSU countries (including via the new TurkStream and Power of Siberia pipelines). This result ranks among the top five in the Company’s history.
We have and will continue to meet the gas demand in the domestic market too. Moreover, starting 2021 Gazprom is accelerating the construction of new gas networks — the respective arrangements have already been made with 67 Russian regions. Together, we have set an ambitious but achievable goal — within the next five years, i.e. by 2026, we aim to increase Russia’s gas penetration rate to 90.1% of what is technically feasible.
Understanding the utmost social significance of that task, Gazprom will triple its investment in this area versus the last five years to RUB 526.1 billion. Natural gas will be made available to a further 3,632 localities, mostly villages and rural areas. That means gas access for 538,000 households and apartments and more than 3,200 boiler houses and businesses.
Natural gas is very simple to use and therefore makes life a lot easier. Crucially, it is also eco-friendly. By widely using gas in energy, transport and other sectors, we all make a significant contribution to preserving the environment for the current and future generations.
On top of that, Gazprom is constantly making technological improvements across all its facilities within the gas supply chain. It is chiefly thanks to this that in 2020 we were able to reduce our water consumption for internal needs by 17.5%, our GHG emissions by 11%, and waste generation by 3.2%.
Furthermore, last year saw Gazprom initiate and carry out upwards of 2,200 environmental projects, including planting trees, renovating walkways and parks, and remediating water bodies.
Everyone has the right to a safe environment. That is why we make every effort to ensure the industrial safety of infrastructure across the Gazprom Group and protect the health of all employees. In 2020, we improved the working conditions for over 8,000 people and significantly minimized the risks of occupational hazards.
The COVID-19 pandemic prompted the Company to make certain adjustments to its operations. We quickly adapted our business processes to maintain uninterrupted work across all facilities.
Most importantly, we did everything we could to ensure the safety of our people. The majority of office employees were switched to remote working. We tightened prevention and disinfection measures and conducted regular COVID-19 testing at workplaces. An additional set of measures was adopted to protect shift workers, which included special buffer zones for medical observation of incoming shift personnel and hospitals with state-of-the-art equipment being set up at a number of fields. In addition, we helped furnish public health centers with modern equipment as well as protective suits for doctors.
I would like to give a special mention to our corporate volunteering initiatives. Thousands of Gazprom’s employees came to the aid of people at risk. They delivered food, medicines, and other essentials.
Even in the highly adverse conditions of a worldwide pandemic, Gazprom was able to continue its tradition of supporting important causes, which included helping educational institutions, NGOs, cultural projects, indigenous minorities of the North, and sports development throughout Russia.
Dear friends,
Gazprom works for you. No matter what comes to pass in the global markets, we will always be working to improve our performance in every area, take care of the environment, and facilitate social initiatives. Commitment to the sustainable development principles is what guides Gazprom’s long-term development.
That commitment has been enshrined in the Gazprom Group’s Sustainability Policy. This fundamental strategic document was approved by the Board of Directors in spring 2021. The implementation of the Policy is personally overseen by the Chairman of the Management Committee.