08/08/2017

Press release: Gazprom Neft increases sales of premium-class bitumen materials by 40 percent in 1H 2017

Gazpromneft Bitumen Materials, operator of the Gazprom Neft bitumens business, achieved sales of 58,500 tonnes of premium bitumen products in 1H 2017, 40 percent higher than the first six months of 2016. Total bitumen sales in 1H 2017 exceeded 900,000 tonnes — 10 percent more than the previous year’s figures.

The company significantly increased its client portfolio in the first six months of 2017, commencing deliveries of high-technology bitumens to new areas including the Yuzhny, Privolzhsky and Ural Federal Okrugs, as well as Buratia, Tuva and Komi.

As part of the federal “Safe and Reliable Roads” project* the company is actively developing cooperation with regional government, contributing its scientific resources to joint projects. Branded performance-grade (PG)*** modified binders are being developed at the Gazprom Neft Bitumen Materials Science and Research Centre, to be used on road test-sections under a new system for the design of asphalt mixes (SPAS)**. The company also assists in controlling road construction works in the regions, and monitoring the quality of materials used — on which basis binders and asphalt mixes are selected in line with the specific conditions of use in each territory.

Dmitry Orlov, CEO, Gazpromneft Bitumen Materials, commented: “Developing transport infrastructure is one of government’s priority functions. High-quality roads require high-quality materials. Our company produces and delivers high-technology products, the extensive and integrated use of which makes possible the construction of durable road surfaces able to withstand the high traffic loads and temperature changes typical of the climate in most regions of Russia”.

* The “Safe and Reliable Roads” project is a priority initiative from the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation, directed at bringing together the resources of federal and regional roadbuilders to improve the quality of road infrastructure for people in the country’s largest cities. Project implementation is planned to run from 2017 to 2025. More than 49,700 kilometres of federal, regional and local highways will be brought up to standard in 38 of the country’s urban conurbations, home to more than 19 million people.

** The “SPAS ” volumetric mix design system is analogous to the American Superpave methodology for designing Superpave road coverings. The key feature of this system lies in research into the stress-related properties of bitumen binders and the simulation of composite loads on asphalt concrete, adjusted for the climatic conditions of the region in which it is to be used, as well as likely traffic.

*** The Performance Grade (PG) system is an American system of categorising Superpave binders relative to their performance at different temperatures. It is consistent with the RF-PNST 85-2016 standard, “Oil-based bitumen binders: technical specifications relative to performance at different temperatures.”

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