Youth Day | St. Petersburg International Gas Forum

INTERNATIONAL ACCELERATION PROGRAM “NATURAL GAS & ACELERATOR”

As a part of the St. Petersburg International Gas Forum

Since 2015, St. Petersburg International Gas Forum (SPIGF) has been hosted an international student event “Youth Day” held in cooperation with the leading energy companies. In 2024, the results of the ten-year development of the project were summarized – over these years it brought together more than 2 000 participants from 70 countries and representatives of the industry elite to transfer knowledge about the energy business and search for new ideas and solutions.

In 2025, the project is entering a new stage of development and transforming into the International Acceleration Program “Natural Gas & Accelerator” (NG&Accelerator).

Organiser

The program is organized by St. Petersburg State University of Economics (UNECON) with the support of Gazprom PJSC, Expoforum International LLC, Gazprom Neft PJSC, Comita Group of companies, State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom and other partner companies. It is included in the convention program of SPIGF.

Participants

Participants of NG&Accelerator are talented Master’s and PhD students from different universities all over the world, leading industry experts, senior and top managers of international energy companies, academic representatives.

Format

International Acceleration Program “NG&Accelerator” includes the following tracks:

1. Educational – attending the Virtual Academy under the additional education program “Energy Projects: Technologies for a Sustainable Future”. The program is implemented online and is intended for a wide range of participants who have passed the entrance test. The educational process includes webinars given by experts – representatives of leading energy companies and university professors, as well as self-study, analytical work and individual assignments.

2. Project – dividing participants of the Virtual Academy into teams and project work in the field of new energy solutions under the guidance of experts, followed by the selection of five best projects.

3. Final – presentation of projects by the five best teams to a jury, as well as participation in special events of St. Petersburg International Gas Forum: workshops, “Off-tie meeting” with experts and heads of energy companies, exhibition and SPIGF Plenary Session, etc.

Results of the Youth Day 2024

On 9-11 October 2024, the Youth Day was held as part of the official convention programme of St. Petersburg International Gas Forum. It was organized for the tenth time by St. Petersburg State University of Economics with the support of Gazprom, Expoforum International and other partner companies.

In 2024, 30 best students from 12 countries (Russia, Belarus, Vietnam, Zambia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Cameroon, Kenya, Nigeria, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Ethiopia) out of 300 candidates had the opportunity to meet in St. Petersburg at the Expoforum site to discuss current issues of energy industry development with leading experts.

The intensive interactive program of the Youth Day included the following events:

Team building;
Panel discussion "Alice in Digital Grid World";
Attending SPIGF exhibition;
Off-tie meeting "Leadership in Energy: Generation Gap" with representatives of leading energy companies;
Business game "Energy Landscape: Towards Advanced Technologies".

A highlight of the programme was the Winners of the Virtual Academy Awards Ceremony, during which Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Management Committee of Gazprom, personally greeted participants of Youth Day 2024, wished them success in setting ambitious goals and achieving them, and congratulated the best graduates of the Virtual Academy (the selection stage and educational programme of Youth Day), which took place in June-July 2024, and presented them with certificates in a solemn atmosphere.

The Youth Day project will continue its work in 2025 and will be happy to welcome new students!