Gazprom's Board of Directors approved on Tuesday the energy giant's investment program for 2010, stipulating 5.4% growth in investment from the current year to 802.4 billion rubles ($27.8 billion).

Gazprom's investment program stipulates 663.56 billion rubles ($23 billion) in capital expenditure and 138.84 billion rubles ($4.8 billion) in long-term investment. The program, along with the energy giant's budget and cost-cutting plan, will be submitted to the Russian government for consideration.

Gazprom's budget for 2010 projects 3.79 trillion rubles ($131 billion) in revenues and 3.88 trillion rubles ($134.5 billion) in liabilities, expenditures and investment. Financial borrowings will hit 90 billion rubles ($3.1 billion) and the company's surplus will amount to 0.5 billion rubles ($17 million).

Gazprom's earlier adjusted its investment program and budget for 2009 due to external factors resulting from the global economic downturn, including declining demand on all Gazprom's gas markets and lower gas prices.

The energy giant's adjusted 2009 investment program stipulates a 17% cut in investment to 761.53 billion rubles ($26.3 billion), with capital investment reduced 30.9% to 483.48 billion rubles ($16.7 billion).

The adjusted budget for 2009 stipulates a reduction in general revenue and cash by 407.9 billion rubles ($14.1 billion) to 3.3 trillion rubles ($114 billion) and in liabilities, expenditures and investment by 126.8 billion rubles ($4.4 billion) to 3.68 trillion rubles ($127.5 billion), with the company's surplus of 0.5 billion rubles ($17 million).

MOSCOW, November 24 (RIA Novosti)