China will soon fully replace lost EU markets – Gazprom

Russian gas exports to China are set to equal the pre-sanctions level of supplies to the EU, Aleksey Miller says

Russian pipeline gas supplies to China will soon reach the volume sold to the EU before the bloc imposed sanctions on energy imports from Moscow, Gazprom CEO Aleksey Miller said on Wednesday.

The top executive stressed that only exports to China are able to substitute the volumes rejected by EU buyers as a result of Ukraine-related sanctions.

In January 2023, Russia became China’s number one supplier of natural gas, according to Chinese customs data.

Supplies via the Power of Siberia pipeline alone increased by 50% this year to 15.5 billion cubic meters, according to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak. He added that in 2023, pipeline gas sales to China are expected to rise by 43 % to 22 billion cubic meters.

In June, Novak announced plans to increase Russian gas exports to Asian markets to 170 billion cubic meters over a seven-year period, once major infrastructure projects are implemented. Russia expects to build the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline to China though the territory of Mongolia, and increase supplies via the existing Power of Siberia pipeline.

READ MORE: Putin comments on planned new mega gas pipeline

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the EU purchased 155 billion cubic meters of Russian gas in 2021, which accounted for 45% of the bloc's entire gas imports and about 40% of gas consumption.

In 2022, supplies of Russian pipeline gas to the EU nearly halved to around 80 billion cubic meters, according to data from the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR).

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