NEW HEADQUARTERS FOR GAZPROM - Boon or Bane for St. Petersburg?

Der Spiegel ^ | November 15, 2006 | cgh

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Gazprom City is coming to St. Petersburg. But what will it look like? Six internationally known architects have submitted their designs. But locals are worried the city will lose its soul.

Ruffling feathers has become something of a specialty for the Russian gas giant Gazprom. As the state-controlled company -- owner of 16 percent of the world's gas reserves -- expands into Europe, accusations have mounted that it uses gas prices as a political lever. Its recent decision to more than double the price paid by Georgia for gas, and its plan to quadruple prices for Belarus -- both price hikes seen as a punishment for those countries' efforts to seek more freedom from Moscow -- have only cemented those concerns.

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A interesting project - espechially for architects like me. Russians have a long tradition to be open to foreign architecture and design. It started with Peter the Great. St. Petersburg is still a absolute highlight in European architecture (the old town was practically exclusively made by architects from western Europe) and can be highly recommended to interested persons. This tradition never ended although Russia itself got many really interesting architects and architecture. I.e. the teachers I had in my univercity in Hamburg once designed the airport Moscow-Scheremetjewo 2 during the 70ties (littlebit outdated in the meantime - but what counts is that they got the chance to do this even during the cold war).

Although I am aware that most here see the new headquarters of Gazprom as the "home of the evil" my hope that Russia is changing to more freedom has not come to an end.

The contribution to the competition I favor most:

Rem Kohlhaas

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PING!

[Rummenigge]

Tetris ?

[Atlantic Bridge]

Tetris ?

Hehe! Sometimes I wish that Schrödi (we are talking about Gazprom!) would get such a cuboid on his muzzle. ;-)

[Rummenigge]

Let him make his gas deals - that's better then the actual deals (buying into airbus e.g.)

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that's better then the actual deals (buying into airbus e.g.)

Deals? What kind of deals? Angie is acting like a damm commie. Airbus needs capitalism to get rid of all this politcal correct stuff of the past. After a quite stressy time they would be better than ever. The same thing happened with Boeing. Gouvernent money will just enable them to continue their lazy BS. It is a shame.

It is difficult to belong to the politically reasonable people in contemporary Germany.

[Rummenigge]

yup

[Thunder90]

Just waiting for St. Petersburg to get it's other name back (Leningrad). It will happen in the near future...

[M. Espinola]

Gazprom, Putin's very own version of another Opec style, anti-Western energy threat.