Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli met with Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller in Beijing on Aug 26.

Bilateral energy cooperation has made continuous progress, said Zhang, saying China is positive toward expanding energy cooperation with Russia, including natural gas.

Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli meets Alexei Miller, chief executive of Russian gas company Gazprom, in Beijing on Aug 26.[Photo/Xinhua]

He called on the two sides to push forward the construction of the China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline and ensure the completion of the project on schedule. He also suggested negotiations to push for progress in the western route.

China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) and Gazprom signed a deal for the East-Route Gas Project on May 21, 2014. The 30-year contract will see the east-route pipeline begin providing China with 38 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually from 2018.

Construction of the Chinese section of the China-Russia East-Route Natural Gas Pipeline began in June.

The Chinese section of the 3,968-kilometer east-route originates in northeast China’s Heilongjiang province and terminates in Shanghai in the east.

During Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Beijing last November, the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding on the construction of a second natural gas pipeline between China and Russia, known as the West Route project.

The western route pipeline will connect gas deposits in Western Siberia with the northwestern part of China via Russia’s Altai region.

Under the bilateral agreement, Russia will export 70 billion cubic meters of natural gas to China every year upon completion of both the east route and west route gas pipelines.

Zhang said the two sides should conduct energy cooperation in the spirit of mutual understanding and accommodation, mutual benefit and win-win.

Miller said Russia attaches great importance to expanding energy cooperation with China, and is willing to cooperate with China in the natural gas pipe trade as well as the extraction and processing of natural gas.