Russian energy company Gazprom said liberalizing the market for liquefied natural gas means contractual talks with China are under threat. Gazprom Deputy Chief Executive Officer Vitaly Markelov said counterparts at the China National Petroleum Corp. are using liberalization as a bargaining chip on the price it would pay from Russian LNG. “This negatively affects the talks with the Chinese side on other projects related to Russian gas supplies,” he was quoted as saying by Russian news agency Itar-TASS. Since 2006, the Russian government has said it was moving toward a market-based model for the gas market. Gazprom, however, has a tight grip on supplies and export arteries. The company has a 30-year sales agreement with China to deliver up to […]