Russia to shut China gas pipeline
Russia is set to temporarily halt the operation of a major gas pipeline to China, energy giant Gazprom announced on Tuesday.
The Power of Siberia pipeline will undergo routine maintenance between September 22 and September 29, the company said in a statement released via its Telegram channel. The route closes for inspection twice a year, in the spring and in the autumn, in line with a contract between Gazprom and China’s energy company CNPC, the statement explained.
The two energy majors signed a 30-year contract for gas supplies via the Power of Siberia in 2014, with the $400 billion agreement becoming Gazprom’s biggest deal ever.
Deliveries along the 3,000km (1,864-mile) cross-border pipeline started in 2019. The so-called eastern route’s capacity is 61 billion cubic meters of gas per year.
Russia and China are planning another major gas route, with Gazprom currently finalizing construction details for the Soyuz Vostok project, Vladimir Putin said last week at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.
The Soyuz Vostok, which will carry natural gas to China through Mongolia, is part of the larger Power of Siberia 2 pipeline. It will be able to bring up to 50 billion cubic meters of gas to China annually, according to Gazprom.
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