Gazprom says its stake in Shtokman to rise to 75 pct

MOSCOW, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Gazprom said its stake in giant Shtokman gas project will increase to 75 percent after Norway's Statoil exited the partnership, the Russian company said in first-quarter financial report on Thursday.

Gazprom said Statoil returned its 24 percent stake in Shtokman, which was put on hold by the partners due to high costs, in July.

Initially, Gazprom owned a 51 percent stake in the group, while France's Total had 25 percent and Statoil had 24 percent.

The partners have been mired in talks for years over investment and other issues pertained to the development of the remote Barents Sea gas deposit, one of the world's largest with gas reserves of almost 4 trillion cubic metres. (Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin)