Introduction: Mirages of Energy Superpower: Gazprom's Ambitions of Dominance and the Power of the Market; Andrei Vavilov 1. Overview of Russia's Natural Gas Industry; Ivan Nazarov 2. Value and Performance: Gazprom from the Corporate Governance and Finance Perspective; Vladimir Kreyndel 3. A Phantom Energy Empire: The Failure of Gazprom's Downstream Integration; Andrei Vavilov and GeorgyTrofimov 4. A Struggle for Pipelines: Attempts at Strategic Expansion in the Near Abroad; Andrei Vavilov and Georgy Trofimov 5. European Challenges: Competitive Pressure, Gas Market Liberalization, and the Crisis of Long-Term Contracting; Andrei Vavilov and Georgy Trofimov 6. The New Export Routes and Gazprom's Strategic Opportunities in Europe; Andrei Vavilov, Galina Kovalishina, and Georgy Trofimov 7. The Evolution of the Russian Gas Market; Ivan Nazarov.