Moscow - Prime Minister Vladimir Putin sought to ease fears Tuesday over the possibility of Russia joining an Opec-style cartel of gas exporting countries, he said in talks with his Egyptian counterpart Ahmed Nazif.

"We support this idea. But we know about apprehensions and even fears voiced by certain energy consumers," Putin was quoted by news agency Interfax as saying. "I wish to state once and for all: there are no grounds for such fears."

He said energy exporting countries should coordinate policy to ensure "uninterrupted" energy supplies to consumers, but added that Russia would not forgo its independence to sign a cartel agreement with other states.

"None of us is going to cede part of our sovereignty in making decisions," Putin noted. The possibility a gas cartel was previously discussed among Russia, Qatar and Iran.

Putin met with the Egyptian prime minister, as the latter was paying a four-day visit to Moscow.

"I regard Egypt as a leading country of the Arab world," Putin told his counterpart Tuesday.

Experts say there was little substance in modeling a gas cartel on OPEC because gas contracts are often signed over the long-term and differ significantly in export-methods from country to country.

"It's like the Russian fairytale of three very different animals pulling the cart," said Thane Gustafson, a senior director at consultancy Cambridge Energy Research Associates.

Russian exports almost exclusively through pipelines, Qatar mostly deals in liquefied natural gas (LNG), while Iran is not going to be an exporter at all, Gustafson said.

Major world gas exporters such as Norway and Algeria have so far also stayed aloof from the planned gas forum.

Putin's comments came one day after he said the country had to act to bolster oil prices hit by the global economic crisis. His comments suggested that Russia was aiming to become a swing producer.

"As one of the major exporters and producers of oil and petroleum products, Russia cannot sit out from the formulation of global prices for this natural resource," Putin was quoted by local media as saying Monday.

"We have to develop a full set of measures that will enable us to actively influence the market." (dpa)