Construction workers work on a section of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline in China's Hebei province, April 2020. Credit: Imaginechina via AP Images
On February 28, just four days after Russia invaded Ukraine, its state-owned energy giant Gazprom agreed with Mongolia to proceed with plans for one of the world’s largest gas pipelines, aiming to link Russian fields which currently supply Europe to energy-hungry China.
There’s just one hitch: Beijing isn’t yet fully on board.
Gazprom has long been agitating for a deal to supply gas to China via the so-called Power of Siberia 2 pipeline (also known as Soyuz Vostok). Once completed, the new pipeline could funnel up to 50 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas per year, making Russia by far China’s largest single gas supplier.
Any such deal would also help the increasingly isolated Kremlin diversify away from Europe, currently the major consumer of Russian gas. European anger over the invasion of Ukraine has already led Germany to halt certification for a major new gas pipeline from Russia.
But two can play at the diversification game. Even though Presidents Putin
Exclusive longform investigative journalism, Q&As, news and analysis, and data on Chinese business elites and corporations. We publish China scoops you won't find anywhere else.
A weekly curated reading list on China from David Barboza, Pulitzer Prize-winning former Shanghai correspondent for The New York Times.
A daily roundup of China finance, business and economics headlines.
We offer discounts for groups, institutions and students. Go to our Subscriptions page for details.
Zhongguancun, a neighborhood in Beijing, has long been called 'China's Silicon Valley.' But after achieving remarkable success, Zhongguancun is now undergoing something of a makeover as China attempts to control what type of innovation happens there. Can Beijing reinvent Zhongguancun while still replicating its past success?