Ongoing Sino-Russian Energy Honeymoon... Accelerating Construction of Natural Gas Pipeline

GT "One Step Closer to Full Operation of East Line Gas Pipeline"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Kim Hyunjung] The major project of the natural gas pipeline construction connecting eastern China and Russia has recently been completed, according to the Chinese state-run Global Times (GT) on the 4th.

The project is based on the contract between China National Petroleum Corporation and Russia's Gazprom in May 2014, which aims to supply 38 billion cubic meters of Russian natural gas annually to China starting from 2024. At the time of the contract, it was known to be worth about 300 billion dollars (approximately 388.5 trillion won), and the following year, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin reaffirmed the agreement during a summit meeting.

The entire pipeline stretches over 3,000 km in Russia and 5,111 km in China, totaling over 8,000 km. According to PipeChina, the recently completed project consists of a 10.225 km tunnel and three natural gas pipelines with a diameter of 1,422 mm, and the 28-month construction was completed on the 3rd.

The Times reported, "Russian gas can now cross the Yangtze River and reach Shanghai," adding, "This will lay the foundation for the completion of a groundbreaking energy cooperation project between China and Russia."

Lin Bochang, Director of the China Energy Policy Research Institute at Xi’an University, told the Times, "We are one step closer to the full operation of the China-Russia eastern route gas pipeline, which will help secure China’s energy supply amid rising international prices," emphasizing, "In the context of the Ukraine crisis and China’s efforts to optimize its energy consumption structure, future China-Russia cooperation opportunities will expand."

Chinese Vice Premier Han Zheng also emphasized energy cooperation between the two countries at the opening ceremony of the 4th China-Russia Energy Business Forum recently. He said, "We must build a close energy cooperation partnership to improve the welfare of our people and contribute more to global energy security and sustainable development."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.