Russian energy giant Gazprom plans to open a regional office in Brazil's Rio de Janeiro by the end of 2010, a Kremlin source said on Thursday.
The announcement was made as Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva arrived in Moscow on Thursday for an official visit with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev slated for Friday.
The Brazilian leader is set to discuss bilateral cooperation, including as part of international organizations, as well as urgent issues on the international agenda.
"Gazprom plans to open a regional office in Rio de Janeiro in 2010," the Kremlin source said, adding that there were several joint energy projects in the works, including the construction of hydro- and thermal-electric plants in Brazil.
In 2008, Medvedev said Brazil was chosen for the creation of Gazprom's regional office as it is more centrally located in Latin America. Gazprom has a gas and oil consortium with Venezuela, the Spanish-Argentinian company Repsol and Gazprom are discussing possible cooperation on the Yamal LNG project, as well as with Bolivia in creating a joint project on oil research and extraction.
MOSCOW, May 13 (RIA Novosti)
