Hero of the Soviet Union who built the Unified Gas Supply System
“We could risk our lives, but not the bridgehead, not the cause entrusted to us.” — after the Vistula crossing, 1944
The founding architect of the Soviet gas industry. As head of Glavgaz (1957–1972) and then Minister, he built the Unified Gas Supply System (nearly 100,000 km of trunk pipelines at 55 atm, 1420 mm diameter) by industrialising construction from seasonal to year-round. A Hero of the Soviet Union (1945) for commanding the 629th Rifle Regiment across the Vistula. He proved the viability of remote West Siberian oil by delivering first Shaim crude to Tyumen through a pipeline in December 1965, unlocking the Tyumen breakthrough.
Career Timeline
- 1933–1938Construction engineer at Azovstal metallurgical plant and TsAGI
- 1943–1945Commander, 629th Rifle Regiment; Hero of the Soviet Union (1945)
- 1948–1953Head of Tuymazy Construction → Deputy Minister of Oil Industry for Construction
- 1955–1957Minister of Construction of Oil Industry Enterprises, USSR
- 1957–1965Head of Glavgaz; architect of the Unified Gas Supply System
- 1965–1972Minister of the Gas Industry of the USSR
- 1972–1973Minister of Construction of Oil and Gas Industry Enterprises
Related historical events
Industrialization of Pipeline Construction
In 1955, the USSR Council of Ministers assessed that only 8% of the population had gas access and annual production languished below 10 billion m³, against 250 billion in the United States. Kortunov, appointed to lead the newly created Glavgaz in 1957, drove a technological revolution that transformed pipeline construction from seasonal work into a year-round industrial process.
The centerpiece was a flow-line, high-speed construction system for large-diameter trunk pipelines (1,420 mm, 55 atm). Rotary excavators mechanized trenching; bitumen-rubber composite insulation enabled winter waterproofing; crossings of natural and artificial obstacles were assembled from prefabricated units. The Stavropol–Moscow line proved the model, and within fifteen years nearly 100,000 km of trunk pipelines had been laid.
Simultaneously, Kortunov built a vertically integrated R&D and design base under Glavgaz (eleven institutes including VNIIGAZ, VNIIST, and Giprotruboprovod, plus regional research centers) that unified design, construction, and equipment development. On this foundation, over 15 million kW of compressor stations and underground gas storage came online. By the early 1970s Soviet gas output reached 209 billion m³, matching the United States, and gas rose to 19.5% of the national fuel balance.