Serbian and Russian Presidents, Boris Tadic and Dmitry Medvedev respectively, arranged Tuesday in Belgrade a loan amounting to one billion dollars, Tanjug has learnt.

Expert teams of the two countries will discuss the details concerning the distribution of the funds, but it is certain that USD 200 million will be earmarked as aid for the Serbian budget, Tanjug has learnt.

At the same time, Srbijagas General Director Dusan Bajatovic and Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee Alexei Miller signed in Belgrade an agreement on setting up of a joint company for the Banatski Dvor gas storage and an Annex on the South Stream gas pipeline.

“Negotiations on Banatski Dvor were completed and this was finalized today. We also made an agreement on deadlines for the construction of the South Stream gas pipeline,” Bajatovic told Tanjug after the signing of the agreements, adding that a “correction” was made on the deadlines included in the contract on the South Stream construction.

Setting up of a joint company for the modernization of the underground gas storage in Banatski Dvor is one of the three elements of the oil and gas arrangement, which was signed by Serbia and Russia in late 2008.

The joint investment should increase the capacity of the Banatski Dvor storage to at least 800 million cubic meters of gas.

The oil and gas arrangement between Serbia and Russia also includes setting up of a joint company for the construction of a section of the South Stream gas pipeline through Serbia, which is why a Founding Agreement was signed in Sochi on May 15, 2009.