Power of Siberia

History

In 2007, the Ministry of Industry and Energy of Russia approved the Eastern Gas Program, which included construction of the Yakutia–Khabarovsk–Vladivostok pipeline. | script-title=ru: "Сила Сибири" – сила прогресса и развития |trans-title = Power of Siberia – the power of progress and development | access-date = 2019-12-12

On 29 October 2012, Russian president Vladimir Putin instructed Alexey Miller, CEO of Gazprom to start the construction of the pipeline. | script-title=ru:"Газпром" получил импульс для освоения Чаянды |trans-title=Gazprom received an impulse for conquest of Chayanda | access-date=2014-04-11 The Yakutia–Khabarovsk–Vladivostok pipeline project was officially renamed Power of Siberia at the end of 2012. | trans-title = The Yakutia–Khabarovsk–Vladivostok gas pipeline renamed Power of Siberia | access-date=2019-12-04

On 21 May 2014, Russia and China signed a 30-year gas deal worth $400 billion which was needed to make the project feasible. Construction was launched on 1 September 2014 in Yakutsk by Putin and Chinese deputy prime minister Zhang Gaoli. | access-date= 2014-09-02}} | access-date=2019-12-09}} | access-date=2019-12-04}} Construction of the connecting pipeline in China started on 29 June 2015. | access-date=2019-12-04}}

On 4 September 2016, Miller and China National Petroleum Corporation's Chairman Wang Yilin signed an agreement to build a crossing under the Amur River for the pipeline. Two tunnels under the river were completed by China Petroleum Pipeline in March 2019.

In 2017, construction of the Atamanskaya (Zeyskaya) compressor station began. The Atamanskaya and Chayandinskaya compressor stations were completed in 2019. | script-title=ru: На Центральной ДКС Чаяндинского месторождения запущен в работу 1-й газоперекачивающий агрегат | trans-title = The 1st gas pumping unit was launched at the Central BCS of the Chayandinskoye field | access-date=2019-12-09 Construction of all compressor stations is scheduled to be completed by 2022.

The pipeline was filled with gas in October 2019. Deliveries to China started on 2 December 2019. In 2020, China has imported 4.1 billion cubic meters of natural gas from Russia through the pipeline. It is expected that amount will increase to 38 billion cubic meters by 2023.

By December 2024, the full pipeline for the Power of Siberia was completed by China. After the pipeline's full completion, Russian state-owned gas supplier Gazprom announced that daily flows of pipeline gas supplies to China exceeded Russia's maximum contractual obligations.

Technical description

Together with the development of the Chayanda field and the Amur Gas Processing Plant, the whole Power of Siberia project was expected to cost US$55–70 billion. | access-date=2019-12-05 , the pipeline was estimated to cost 1.1 trillion roubles, the development of the Chayanda field was estimated to cost 450 billion roubles, and the Amur Gas Processing Plant was estimated to cost 950 billion roubles. | script-title=ru: Стоимость строительства газопровода «Сила Сибири» превысила 1 трлн руб. |trans-title= The cost of building the Power of Siberia gas pipeline exceeded 1 trillion rubles | access-date=2019-12-09

The total length of the pipeline, when fully completed, will be 3968 km. | access-date=2019-12-05}} The full capacity of the 1420 mm pipeline would be up to 61 e9m3 per annum of natural gas, of which 38 e9m3 per annum are supplied to China. | script-title=ru:«Газпром» отложил запуск газопровода «Сила Сибири» до 2019 г. |trans-title=Gazprom postponed start of the Power of Siberia pipeline until 2019 | access-date=2014-04-11 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160306102004/http://uk.reuters.com/article/russia-rosneft-gas-idUKL6N0M412120140307 | url-status = dead | archive-date = March 6, 2016 | access-date=2014-04-11 In 2019, the export to China was expected to start with 5 e9m3 per annum in 2020, and to increase gradually to 38 e9m3 per annum by 2025.

The pipeline's working pressure is ensured by nine compressor stations | trans-title = Implementation of the gas pipeline project Power of Siberia (PJSC Gazprom) | access-date = 2019-12-04 with a total capacity of 1,200 MW. The Chayandinskaya compressor station has capacity of 577 MW and the Atamanskaya compressor station has capacity of 128 MW. The remaining seven compressor stations—Saldykelskaya, Olyokminskaya, Amginskaya, Nimnyrkaya, | script-title=ru: 20% «Силы Сибири». Компания Тимченко без конкурса получила второй подряд на строительство трубопровода в Китай |trans-title= 20% of Power of Siberia. Timchenko's company received a second contract for the construction of a pipeline to China without a tender | access-date=2019-12-05 Nagornaya, Skovorodinskaya, and Sivakiskaya | script-title=ru: Сумма контрактов на стройку "Силы Сибири" выросла до 554 млрд рублей |trans-title = The amount of contracts for the construction of Power of Siberia increases to 554 billion rubles | access-date=2019-12-09 —have a total capacity of 481 MW.

The pipeline is able to withstand temperatures as low as -62 °C. It has a nanocomposite coating to increase the lifetime of the pipeline. To withstand earthquakes, the pipeline uses materials that will deform under seismic activity.

According to the study published by the Cambridge University Press, the pipeline seems to avoid technical and legal standards applied to similar pipelines from Russia to Europe because of lower requirements in both Russia and China.

Route

The pipeline is fed from the Chayanda field in Yakutia, | access-date = 2008-08-02}} which was launched in 2019. The Kovykta field in Irkutsk Oblast will start to supply to the pipeline in 2023. | trans-title = How is the Power of Siberia gas pipeline arranged and what will its launch give | access-date=2019-12-04 The 2156.1 km first phase of the pipeline starts at the Chayanda field in Yakutia. | trans-title = Gazprom will complete the laying of the Power of Siberia in 2018 | access-date=2019-12-05 It runs, partly within the same corridor as the Eastern Siberia–Pacific Ocean oil pipeline, | access-date=2019-12-05}} through Lensk, Olyokminsk, Aldan, Neryungri, Skovorodino, and Svobodny, | trans-title = Power of Siberia – a project of world significance | access-date=2019-12-09 where the pipeline is connected to the Amur Gas Processing Plant. From there, the pipeline branches south to Blagoveshchensk on the Russia–China border. Together they form the eastern route for gas supplies from Siberia to China.

The 803.5 km second phase of the pipeline connects the Kovykta field to the Chayanda field. Gazprom has not published if and when this extension will be built.

Contractors

Gazprom Transgaz Tomsk was the main construction contractor, while VNIPIgazdobycha, both subsidiaries of Gazprom, was the general design contractor. | access-date=2019-12-12

Different sections of the pipeline were built by Stroytransgaz owned by Gennady Timchenko, Neftegazstroy, and Stroygazmontazh owned by Arkady Rotenberg. | script-title=ru:Стройтрансгаз без конкурса получил подряд на второй участок "Силы Сибири" | trans-title= Stroytransgaz without a tender received a contract for the second section of Power of Siberia | access-date=2019-12-12

Pipes were manufactured by the Vyksa Steel Works of OMK, the Chelyabinsk Pipe Rolling Plant, the Izhora Pipe Mill of Severstal, the Volzhsky Pipe Plant of TMK, Zagorsk Pipe Plant, and Pipe Innovative Technologies. | script-title=ru: Газпром выбрал поставщиков труб большого диаметра для газопровода Сила Сибири-1 на 65,8 млрд руб | trans-title = Gazprom selected suppliers of large-diameter pipes for the Power of Siberia-1 gas pipeline for 65.8 billion rubles | access-date=2019-12-12 | script-title=ru: "Газпром" заключил крупнейшую трубную сделку | trans-title= Gazprom concluded the largest pipe deal | access-date=2019-12-12 Anti-corrosion nanocomposite coating of pipes was done by Metaclay, a joint venture of Rusnano and Gazprom. | script-title=ru: Трубы "Метаклэй" будут использованы для большей части газопровода "Сила Сибири" | trans-title= Metaclay pipes will be used for most of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline | access-date=2019-12-12 | access-date=2019-12-12 Compressor turbine units were supplied by UEC-Perm Engines. | script-title=ru: В газопроводе «Сила Сибири» работают 18 пермских газотурбинных установок | trans-title= The Power of Siberia gas pipeline is operated by 18 Perm gas turbine units | access-date=2019-12-12

Impact

The pipeline has strong implications for energy security in both China and Russia in the short term.

For China, the pipeline diversifies natural gas supplies for China. | script-title=ru: "Сила Сибири" — это только начало. У газопровода появится брат-близнец | trans-title= Power of Siberia is only the beginning. Twin pipeline appears | access-date=2019-12-12 It is designed to reduce China's dependence on coal, which is more carbon intensive and causes more pollution than natural gas.

For Russia, the pipeline allows another economic partnership in the face of resistance to pipelines being built in Western Europe.

References

References

1. (2019-09-05). "Construction goes smoothly on China-Russia gas pipeline". [[Xinhua]].
2. (2016-09-04). "Gazprom and CNPC sign EPC contract to construct underwater crossing of Power of Siberia". Gazprom.
3. Balmforth, Tom. (2019-10-25). "Gazprom finishes filling China-bound Power of Siberia gas pipeline". [[Reuters]].
4. (2019-12-02). "China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline in operation". [[Xinhua News Agency.
5. Shabbir, Fahad. (2019-11-25). "Putin, Xi Expected To Hold Teleconference For Launching Power Of Siberia Dec 2 - Kremlin". UrduPoint.
6. Pao, Jeff. (2022-07-20). "Power of Siberia 2 to divert Europe-bound gas to China".
7. (December 2, 2024). "China completes full pipeline for Power-of-Siberia gas". [[Reuters]].
8. (2024-12-08). "Russia’s Pipe-Gas Flows to China at New Daily Record". Bloomberg.com.
9. (2014-09-02). "Putting the Power into Siberia". Siberian Times.
10. (2017-06-15). "Gazprom project ahead of schedule". Pipelines International.
11. (June 2019). "The Power of Siberia: A Eurasian Pipeline Policy 'Good' for Whom?". [[Cambridge University Press]].
12. (2019-11-25). "How Russia-China Gas Pipeline Changes Energy Calculus". [[Bloomberg L.P..
13. (2019-03-29). "Underwater tunnels completed for China-Russia gas pipeline". [[Xinhua]].
14. (2019-12-02). "'Power of Siberia': Russia, China launch massive gas pipeline". [[Al Jazeera]].