Wintershall CEO: Ukraine crisis won't scupper Gazprom deal

* Says moving closer to Russia as due to gain gas field access

* Criticises EU for delaying pipeline progress

* Focuses also on new regions in Middle East

By Vera Eckert

KASSEL, Germany, March 13 (Reuters) - BASF oil and gas unit Wintershall said the Ukraine crisis would not scupper an asset-swap agreement with Gazprom (MCX: GAZP.ME - news) which would give Russia greater access to gas trading and storage in Germany.

Wintershall Chief Executive Rainer Seele said on Thursday that the companies had all the necessary approvals and the arrangement, agreed in 2012 and approved late last year, was now only a matter of operational implementation.

"I see no impact from the Ukraine crisis on the process," he told a news conference.

The deal will give Wintershall more access to Siberian gas fields as it focuses on its role as a producer rather than transporter and trader of gas.

Board member Gerhard Koenig, in charge of trading, said: "Our customers are expecting the deal. Gazprom sees it as a springboard for further growth in Europe and Germany."

Wintershall said it will see sales fall this year due to the divestment in favour of Gazprom inside Germany, but that it will compensate for that by reaping more benefits from oil and gas production in its core regions across the globe.

Under the swap deal, Russian state-controlled gas producer Gazprom will get full control of one of Europe's leading gas storage firms Astora and gas trader Wingas, second to E.ON in Germany's gas market, Europe's biggest.

Wintershall will gain 25 percent of the Siberian Achimov IV and V blocks, where current production is around 2 billion cubic metres (bcm) a year and is set to quadruple to 8 bcm by 2018.

"We're getting closer to Gazprom in oil and gas, in Russia and Europe ... We know that we are good together," Seele said.

Seele also said that Wintershall's 50 percent stake in Gascade, a gas pipeline grid company which it shares with Gazprom and was exempted in the swap deal, was not up for sale.

SOUTH STREAM

Board member Mario Mehren said that, notwithstanding questions raised in Brussels over Gazprom's new South Stream pipeline, work on the plan was on time and the first tranche would be completed by the end of 2015.

Wintershall is a shareholder along with France's EDF (EUREX: DE000A1XQ1S7.EX - news) and Italy's Eni (NYSE: E - news) . It is also part of the Nord Stream consortium which has been operating a huge pipeline for Russian gas via the Baltic Sea since 2011.

Seele criticised moves by the EU Energy Commissioner to slow progress on an onwards link to Nord Stream, Opal, and more delays on technical issues surrounding South Stream in the latest sign of strains in the energy links between Moscow and the European Union, caused by Russian forces' seizure of Crimea.

"Every pipeline is necessary as it will bring more gas security. (Commissioner Guenther) Oettinger needs to rethink his strategy," he said.

Opal, which runs to the Czech Republic and can hold 36 bcm of gas, can only be half filled due to a regulatory spat.

Seele also said an agreement to explore oil and gas in North Africa with BP (LSE: BP.L - news) was agreed on March 12 but there were no details available. "We'll talk about it later in 2014," he said.

Wintershall gave no indication when it might resume more oil shipments from Libya where export terminal strikes have blocked transfer of its output since July 2013, and where only its offshore fields are producing.

But it pegged great hopes on upcoming expansions in Norway, Argentina's unconventional gas resources, Abu Dhabi and Qatar.