Press Release

Commissioning of GAZELLE pipeline improves gas supplies to Czech Republic and EU

Přimda, 14 January 2013 – The GAZELLE gas pipeline was officially commissioned today in Přimda, Czech Republic. Bringing this pipeline into service opens up the “new northern route” for the transportation of natural gas to western Europe. Construction of the Gazelle pipeline is of major strategic importance for both the CzechRepublic and for Europe as a whole. This was reflected by the guests of honour at the event, who performed the official commissioning ceremony: Czech Prime Minister Petr Nečas, Anne Ruth Herkes, State Secretary of the Federal Ministry of the Economy and Technologies Federal Republic of Germanyand AnatolijBorisovitchJanovskij, State Secretary at the Ministry for Energetics of the Russian Federation, together with the CEO of RWE AG, Peter Terium, and the CEO of NET4GAS, Thomas Kleefuss.

The GAZELLE pipeline is a further step in the diversification of gas sources and ensuring a greater security of supply for the CzechRepublic and the EU as a whole. In Brandov, northern Bohemia, it connects with the NORD STREAM (Baltic) and the OPAL pipelines (German territory); it is also connected with the MEGAL long-distance gas network, which supplies southern Germany and France, at the Rozvadov-Waidhaus border station by way of the Přimda distribution hub. The pipeline is connected with the CzechRepublic’s existing long-distance gas network at Brandov, Jirkov, Sviňomazy and Přimda. Construction of the new 166-km pipeline began in October 2010 when the foundation stone for the Brandov station was laid. The pipeline has a lengths of 166 km. It is a purely private investment project by NET4GAS, costing
CZK 10 billion.

Milan Řepka

Spokesman for NET4GAS, s.r.o.

OPAL pipeline / GAZELLE pipeline
LENGTH:
DIAMETER:
PRESSURE:
CAPACITY:
INVESTMENT VALUE: / 470 km
1,400 mm
10.0 MPa
< 35 billion m³ / year
approx. CZK 25 billion / LENGTH:
DIAMETER:
PRESSURE:
CAPACITY:
INVESTMENT VALUE: / 166 km
1,400 mm
8.4 MPa
< 30.5 billion m³ / year
approx. CZK 10 billion

GAZELLE OpeningCeremony Přimda 2013 (photo: NET4GAS, Ronald Hilmar, sn.)

(fromleftside: Peter Terium, CEO RWE AG,; AnatolijBorisivičJanovskij, deputyministerforEnergyofthe Russian Federation; AnneRuthHerkes, StateSecretaryofthe federál ministry oftheEconomyand Technologies oftheGermany; Thomas Kleefuss, CEO NET4GAS, s.r.o. and PrimeMinisterofthe Czech Republic Petr Nečas)

GAZELLE OpeningCeremony Přimda 2013 (photo: NET4GAS, Ronald Hilmar, sn.)

(fromleftside:AnneRuthHerkes, StateSecretaryofthe federál ministry oftheEconomyand Technologies oftheGermany; PrimeMinisterofthe Czech Republic Petr Nečas andThomas Kleefuss, CEO NET4GAS, s.r.o.)

GAZELLE OpeningCeremony Přimda 2013 (photo: NET4GAS, Ronald Hilmar, sn.)

(fromleftside:Anatolij BorisivičJanovskij, deputy minister for Energy of the Russian Federation; Anne Ruth Herkes, State Secretary of the federál ministry of the Economy and Technologies of the Germany; Peter Terium, CEO RWE AG,; Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Petr Nečas; Thomas Kleefuss, CEO NET4GAS, s.r.o.)