RUSSIA PRODS CHINA TO PAY FOR SIBERIAN PIPELINE

On July 13 the foreign ministers of Russia and China met in Moscow to discuss bilateral ties, including energy issues. After the meeting Russia’s top diplomat, Sergei Lavrov, noted a shared interest in investment cooperation and coordination of plans to develop Russia’s Far East and Siberia, as well as Northeastern China (Interfax, RIA-Novosti, July 13).

Russian energy officials were keen to reassure their Chinese counterparts that Russia is a reliable energy supplier. Just three days earlier, Industry and Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko, in Beijing for a bilateral energy commission meeting, announced that Russia had fulfilled its commitments and supplied 10 million tons of oil to China by rail (Interfax, Itar-Tass, July 9-10). However, he seemed reluctant to mention that Russia had previously planned but failed to raise its oil shipments to China by rail to 15 millions tons in 2006.

During talks in China, Russian officials were keen to counter questions about the economic viability of the Eastern Siberia-Pacific Ocean (ESPO) pipeline. The first stage of ESPO would “undoubtedly” be filled with 30 millions tons/year, because Russian oil companies have already pledged more crude for the pipeline, Khristenko explained. Regarding the second stage, there is “more optimism than pessimism” about filling it to its 80 millions tons/year capacity, he said.

If a branch pipeline is built from the ESPO to China, Russia could supply 15 millions tons/year at the first stage and up to 30 millions tons/year eventually, Khristenko predicted. Transneft and the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) could cooperate in designing and studying the feasibility of the offshoot line, he said.

Eurasia Daily Monitor