Power of Siberia 2: Russia’s Next Major Natural Gas Pipeline to China
Overview and Key Details of the Power of Siberia 2 Pipeline
By Sam Li and Lewis Jackson
May 19 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit China and hold talks with President Xi Jinping this week and a Kremlin aide said on Monday that the proposed Power of Siberia 2 natural gas pipeline will be discussed in detail.
China, the world's biggest oil and gas importer, is a major buyer of Russian energy products.
Key Facts About the Planned Pipeline
Here are some facts about the planned pipeline:
What is the Power of Siberia 2?
The planned 2,600-km (1,616-mile) Power of Siberia 2 system is expected to carry 50 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas per year to China through Mongolia from the Arctic gas fields of Yamal. It would complement the existing Power of Siberia 1 pipeline that brought 38 bcm of gas from Russia to China last year. In September, during the last meeting between Putin and Xi, the two sides agreed to increase the capacity of the Power of Siberia 1 to 44 bcm a year.
Russia's Gazprom, which will build the Power of Siberia 2, began a feasibility study in 2020 on the project and announced a legally binding 30-year supply memorandum in September 2025.
Power of Siberia 2 has been stalled due to disagreements over price. In the September meeting, Putin said the price of gas on the system would be based on a market formula similar to the one for Russian shipments to Europe.
The project has taken on new importance for Russia since sanctions imposed after its invasion of Ukraine cut it off from most of its European customers.
China’s Position on the Pipeline
Official Statements and Progress
However, China has made few public remarks about the pipeline. When Gazprom announced the memorandum last September, China did not release any matching statement.
The head of the research unit at China National Petroleum Corp said last November that giant gas projects like this need at least eight to 10 years to build.
China said in its 15th five-year plan in March that it would push forward the “early-stage” work on the Power of Siberia 2.
China's Existing Gas Pipeline Import Network
Current Infrastructure and Capacity
China's natural gas imports through pipelines have been steadily growing, reaching 59.4 million tons in 2025 and accounting for about 19% of domestic consumption, thanks to five existing pipelines that bring natural gas from Central Asia, Russia and Myanmar.
China has three pipelines that start in Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, cross Kazakhstan, and then enter the country in the Xinjiang region, supplying more than 40 bcm of natural gas annually.
In the south, the 793-km Myanmar-China Gas Pipeline began operating in 2013 and was designed to carry 12 bcm a year.
Russia and China are also constructing another pipeline with a capacity of 10 bcm to bring gas from Russia's Pacific island of Sakhalin.
(Reporting by Sam Li and Lewis Jackson; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)
