The timing and cost of the construction of the new mega pipeline Power of Siberia 2, which will deliver Russian natural gas to China, will be determined after Moscow and Beijing sign binding agreements, Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak announced on Thursday.
He also revealed that technical and economic analysis had already been carried out and that the resource base and preliminary technological parameters for the new pipeline had been assessed.
Power of Siberia 2 is expected to allow for up to 50 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas to be delivered annually from Yamal Region in northern Russia to China via Mongolia. This is nearly as much as the now idle Nord Stream 1 pipeline under the Baltic Sea, which was damaged by explosions in September 2022.
The deputy prime minister also highlighted soaring gas exports to China via the existing mega pipeline, the Power of Siberia.
“Russia’s diversification of gas exports to new markets continues with a focus on deeper cooperation with countries in the Asia-Pacific region. We are rapidly increasing gas exports to China via the Power of Siberia pipeline, and a Far Eastern route project with a capacity of 10 bcm is being implemented,” Novak noted.
Russia currently supplies gas to China via Power of Siberia, a section of the so-called Eastern Route, under a bilateral 30-year agreement. Deliveries started in 2019, and the pipeline is expected to reach its full operational capacity of 38 bcm of natural gas annually by 2025.
Gazprom has reported hitting record daily gas exports to China nine times since the beginning of 2023 and forecasts that gas supplies to Russia’s leading trading partner will grow further thanks to soaring demand.
Once all the pipelines are fully operational, the volume of Russian gas supplies to China could reach nearly 100 bcm annually.
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