Russia replaces Nord Stream 2 with pipeline to China
(Baonghean.vn) - Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak announced on September 15 that a Russian pipeline to China will replace the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline to Europe that was abandoned amid the conflict in Ukraine.
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Construction of the Power of Asia-Siberia pipeline. Photo: AP |
In an interview with Russian TV channel Rossiya-1 about whether Russia would replace Nord Stream 2 with the Power of Siberia-2 pipeline, Mr. Novak affirmed that "it is indeed so".
Earlier, on the sidelines of his visit to Uzbekistan, the official said that Russia and China would soon sign agreements on the supply of "50 billion cubic meters of gas" per year via the future Asian Power Siberia 2 pipeline. This volume is almost equal to the maximum transport capacity of Nord Stream 1 (55 billion cubic meters), which has been shut down since September 2.
The Power of Siberia-2 pipeline will boost China's energy-hungry economy partly through Mongolia. Construction of the pipeline is set to begin in 2024.
Power of Siberia-2 is a gas pipeline designed to run from fields in Siberia to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in western China.
The 2,460-kilometer Nord Stream 2 pipeline runs along the bottom of the Baltic Sea. The pipeline infrastructure was ready to start last September, but on February 22, after Russia recognized the sovereignty of the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz ordered a halt to the licensing process for the new pipeline.
Meanwhile, as Russian President Vladimir Putin noted, Nord Stream 2 is not being built in vain, it will be launched "when needed"./.
