Beijing launches 1,100km section of Russia-China natural gas pipeline

China has brought the middle section of the China-Russia East natural gas pipeline into operation. It is connected to the Power of Siberia gas pipeline from Russia that will deliver blue fuel to northern China.

According to the state-run China Oil & Gas Piping Network Corp (PipeChina), the 1,110km section of the pipeline will stimulate the development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the country’s main manufacturing area, by increasing gas supply by 27 million cubic meters per day.

The new section starts at Changling city in Jilin and stretches to Yongqing city in Hebei, connecting the existing gas pipelines in the northeastern and northern parts of the country, as well as the gas storage projects in Dalian, Tangshan and Liaohe.

The new route will also reportedly help to improve air quality in the region, where a quarter of China’s steelmaking capacity is located.

The northern part of the international gas route was launched in December 2019, and so far has transmitted around four billion cubic meters of natural gas, PipeChina says.

China started the construction of the southern section of the China-Russia East pipeline in July, extending the route to Shanghai in eastern China. The pipeline is projected to reach an annual capacity of 38 billion cubic meters when it is completed in 2025.

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