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China signs contract to purchase 25 billion cubic meters of Turkmen gas

Thus, the annual supplies of Turkmen gas to China will amount to 65 billion cubic meters per year

ASHGABAT, September 4 (Itar-Tass) - China has signed a contract to purchase 25 billion cubic meters of Turkmen gas, according to a communiqué, which was signed after the talks between Presidents of Turkmenistan and China, Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov and Xi Jinping, on September 3.

The document has been signed by the Turkmengaz state concern and China National Petroleum Corporation.

Thus, the annual supplies of Turkmen gas to China will amount to 65 billion cubic meters per year.

In order to ensure reliability of gas supplies the parties agreed to build the fourth section of the Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline via Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

After the first day of the Chinese president’s visit to Turkmenistan both parties concluded an agreement on cooperation to provide finances to developing the Galkynysh gas field, the world’s second-largest gas deposit, in Mary Province of Turkmenistan and a contract to prepare the facility for producing 30 billion cubic meters of gas annually.

Earlier, in 2006-2009 the parties also signed a contract to supply 40 billion cubic meters of gas to China. When the Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan-Kazakhstan-China gas pipeline was launched in December 2009 gas was supplied from the Malai gas field in Lebap Province of Turkmenistan.

Experts say in 2012 China exported 21.3 billion cubic meters of Turkmen gas.

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