ALMATY – Kazakhstan yesterday said it had discussed building a gas pipeline linking Russia and China as Moscow pivots to Asia amid conflict with the West.
The pipeline could also supply regions in the expansive central Asian republic, which suffers from frequent power shortages despite its vast resources.
“Kazakhstan proposed that Gazprom consider new transit routes for Russian gas to China, taking into account gas supply to the domestic market,” a spokesman for the national gas company QazaqGaz said.
No other details were provided.
Since the West imposed a flurry of sanctions on Russia over its assault on Ukraine, Moscow has sought to accentuate its pivot towards Asia’s huge energy market.
Russian gas exports plummeted by 25% in 2022, but the amount of gas sent through the “Power of Siberia” pipeline to China hit record highs.
In 2024, Gazprom is planning to start building the “Power of Siberia-2” gas pipeline after the Nord Stream 2 gas link to Europe was abandoned amid the Ukraine conflict.
Moscow has also consolidated links with energy-rich Uzbekistan, which has also faced energy shortages.
Uzbekistan will start importing natural gas from Russia for the first time on March 1, authorities said.
Kazakh Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov this week demanded authorities solve the problem of gasification of the northern and eastern regions of the country.
Despite the country’s resources, only just under 60% of the population has access to gas.
To that end, the government is also considering building a pipeline between east and west Kazakhstan. – AFP, February 25, 2023
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