MOSCOW, February 13. /TASS/. Russia reduced gas production at the end of 2022 to 673.8 bln cubic meters (bcm), exports - by 25.1% to 184.4 bcm, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in the article for the Energy Policy magazine.

"Gas production in 2022 amounted to 673.8 bln cubic meters. Exports decreased by 25.1% to 184.4 bln cubic meters," he said. In 2021, gas production in Russia amounted to 762.8 bcm, falling by 11.66%.

The decline in production and exports, according to Novak, is due to European countries' refusal to purchase Russian gas, as well as sabotage at the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines.

"At the same time, during the year, gas supplies to China were actively increased. The daily records for transit of Russian gas through the Power of Siberia gas pipeline were surpassed on a regular basis. As a result, gas shipments to China via the Power of Siberia climbed by 48% to a record-breaking 15.4 bln cubic meters," he noted.

Novak stated that expanding liquefied natural gas (LNG) production is vital for Russia. Last year, LNG shipments grew by 7.9% to 45.7 bln cubic meters and since the global gas market is becoming global, liquefied gas will become increasingly in demand in the future, he added.

He went on to say that Russia is also working on technological advancements in the sphere, specifically on developing local gas liquefaction complexes, with 1 bln rubles ($13.6 mln) being set aside for these purposes.

"Four projects will be launched and partially funded to develop LNG equipment for medium and large-scale production. In total, 18 such projects are planned to be launched in Russia," Novak said.