"The role of Russia is pivotal for a safe, abundant and cost competitive future supply of gas to our continent," said Dispenza, who is also head of gas and power at Italy's Eni.

Dispenza was speaking at a Russia-EU energy conference in Berlin Friday, organized by the Russian gas society and gas giant Gazprom, with the support of Eurogas.

With regard to the ongoing debate over the security of imported gas supplies, after past flow disruptions between Russia, the Ukraine and Europe, Dispenza said "correct signals must be exchanged between Europe and Russia on all the issues affecting the future of our relationship."

"Even more central to an improvement in the perception of security is a better relationship for Ukraine with both Russia and Europe," Dispenza said.

At the same time, he called for representatives of the EU and its member states to send reliable signals to Russia about Europe's interest in Russian gas.

Even though a broad energy mix is fundamental for industrial and private consumers, Russia needs to be assured that the EU is fundamentally interested in Russian supplies, Dispenza said.

"Clear signals should be sent to Russia about the importance of its supplies in any future energy scenarios," Dispenza said.

He also asked Russia to move forward in encouraging European companies to participate in the development of its vast resources.

"In fact, in the current difficult investment climate, foreign investors must be convinced, through attractive and predictable terms, to establish a permanent presence in Russia. Legal and fiscal regimes should be made more stable and rewarding," he said.

--Lars Borchert, newsdesk@platts.com