Russia plans to increase its annual natural gas shipping capacity to 38 billion cubic meters (bcm) to China next year, Russian Deputy Energy Minister Sergey Mochalnikov announced on Tuesday.
The country’s natural gas deliveries to China via the Power of Siberia pipeline surpassed planned targets last year, said Mochalnikov at the meeting of the China-Russia intergovernmental commission for energy cooperation in the capital Moscow.
Russia exceeded the planned deliveries in 2023 by 800 million cubic meters (mcm) and reached 22.7 bcm, he said.
A total of 68 bcm of natural gas has been shipped through the Power of Siberia pipeline since it became operational, Mochalnikov added.
With oil pipelines to China operating at full capacity, he said that Russia is exploring increased maritime oil exports to the country from Black Sea and Baltic Sea ports.
Russia is ready to support companies in this regard, he added.
The Power of Siberia pipeline, built by Gazprom in Eastern Siberia between 2015 and 2019, transports natural gas from Russia’s Yakutia region to China.
On Jan. 12, the Russian energy giant Gazprom announced that it set a new record for daily gas deliveries to China. ‘The supply via the Power of Siberia gas pipeline has again exceeded the company’s daily contractual obligations,’ the company said in a statement, without specifying the volume supplied.
As exports to Europe, one of Russia’s main energy markets, significantly reduced due to sanctions, the country aims to offset this decline by boosting exports to Asian markets, especially China.
