Eon, Germany's largest power group, has made a clear commitment to expand significantly in Russia but will seek to minimise the risks by using its €3bn ($3.7bn) worth of shares in Gazprom

Eon, Germany's largest power group, has made a clear commitment to expand significantly in Russia but will seek to minimise the risks by using its €3bn ($3.7bn) worth of shares in Gazprom, a Russian energy group, as "acquisition currency". The move highlights the shift in strategy by Eon, which has put its US interests on hold to concentrate on expansion eastwards. Eon was one of the first German companies to list on the New York Stock Exchange but has blamed uncertainties about the future regulatory environment in the US for its hesitancy to increase its presence there. Wulf Bernotat, Eon's chief executive, described a memorandum of understanding signed last week in Moscow on a series of planned joint ventures with Gazprom as a "major milestone" for the German group. "We are pretty confident that Russia provides a stable base for future investment, otherwise we would not do it." Binding agreements with Gazprom might not be reached until the end of 2005, Mr Bernotat said.