A new combined cycle gas turbine unit at the Kirishskaya power plant in northern Russia reached the nominal planned capacity of 800 megawatts on Friday.
Prime Minister and president-elect Vladimir Putin attended the launch of the three-turbine unit, the most powerful in the country.
“Experts estimate that gas supplies for domestic and export needs in 2012 will exceed the pre-crisis 2007 levels,” Putin said at a meeting on gas market that was held at the plant.
At 50 trillion cubic meters, Russia’s known reserves of natural gas are the biggest in the world, though further exploration, including in the Arctic, remains mandatory, Putin added.
The event was the biggest one-time launch of a single power generating unit in Russia in 30 years, said OGK-2, the Gazprom subsidiary that controls the plant, located in Leningrad region.