Moscow — Russian President Vladimir Putin told his Mongolian counterpart Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh on Tuesday that he believed the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline project to bring Russian gas to China via Mongolia would move ahead at a “good pace”.
Russia has increased energy supplies to China, the world’s second-largest consumer of oil after the United States, as the west has imposed sweeping economic sanctions on Russia over its actions in Ukraine.
It already supplies natural gas to China via the Power of Siberia pipeline, and hopes to secure a major deal to bring another 50 billion cubic metres (bcm) a year via Power of Siberia 2. However, the talks have been long and painstaking as the key issues, such as the price of the gas, remain elusive.
“Everyone agrees with this project, all parties want to participate, want to work. It’s a matter of implementation. I think we will move at a good pace,” Putin told the Mongolian president in Beijing, where they were taking part in a conference on China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
The Kremlin has said it does not expect any oil or gas deals to be clinched during Putin’s visit and his meetings with Chinese leader Xi Jinping this week.
The Power of Siberia pipeline began supplying gas to China in late 2019. It carried 10.5 bcm in 2021 and 15.5 bcm this year, and is due to supply 38 bcm a year by 2025, under a 30-year contract worth more than $400 billion.
Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Kevin Liffey – Reuters
