BEIJING, December 4. /TASS/. The demand for Russian gas in China will be rising amid expansion of the country’s gas network and the shift to environmentally friendly sources of energy, president of the Contemporary China-Russia Regional Economy Research Institute Song Kui said.
"As more and more Chinese cities shift to environmentally friendly natural gas, abandoning coal and oil, seeking to reach the carbon peak and neutrality, the demand on the Chinese market goes up sharply," he was quoted as saying by the Global Times newspaper. "Once the gas pipeline construction reaches the cities in the Yangtze Delta and eventually Shanghai, the demand for Russian gas will obviously rise even higher," he said.
The expert mentioned the recent dynamic development of the Sino-Russian trade and economic relations. In particular, he noted the strengthening contacts in the sectors of agriculture and supplies of electromechanics products.
That said, Song Kui expects joint efforts in the energy area to remain "the central element of the economic and trade interaction" between the two countries. He also stressed that bilateral projects in the natural gas sector will be "a vivid moment of cooperation."
China Oil & Gas Pipeline Network Corp. reported earlier that supplies of Russian gas via the Power of Siberia pipeline have exceeded 20 bln cubic meters this year, reaching a record level. They have also surpassed 50 bln cubic meters since the facility was commissioned four years ago.
In 2022, Russia exported 15.5 bln cubic meters of gas via Power of Siberia, while this year supplies via the pipeline are expected at 22 bln cubic meters. Reaching the project capacity of 28 bln cubic meters is planned in 2025.