April 18 (Bloomberg) -- OAO Gazprom expects to receive assets from Italy's Eni SpA in countries like Libya as the two companies cooperate in exploring for oil or natural gas and transporting fuel, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

Moscow-based Gazprom, the world's biggest natural gas producer, and Eni, Italy's largest oil company, agreed a year ago to swap assets giving each other reciprocal access to their home markets. Eni bought gas fields in Siberia in return for Gazprom gaining the right to sell fuel in Italy.

``Eni has already received access to assets on the territory of the Russian Federation, and Gazprom expects to get appropriate assets in other countries, including in Libya,'' Putin said today during a press conference in Sardinia with Italy's Prime Minister- elect Silvio Berlusconi.

Eni and Gazprom will jointly develop assets like oil deposits in third countries, according to the agreement. Eni offered its Russian partner a stake in the 140,000-barrel-a-day Elephant field in Libya, Chief Executive Officer Paolo Scaroni said yesterday.

Putin and Berlusconi both said the two companies would continue to work on joint projects. Eni and Gazprom are also developing the South Stream pipeline aimed at bringing Russian gas to central Europe via the Balkans.

``The range of joint projects is wide, from common extraction of energy resources, to participation in the development of infrastructure and pipeline transportation,'' Putin said today.

Berlusconi also said Italy would seek to increase gas imports from Russia.

To contact the reporter on this story: Greg Walters in Moscow gwalters1@bloomberg.net; Anthony DiPaola in Rome at adipaola@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: April 18, 2008 08:40 EDT