On Friday Kazakhstan proposed a gas pipeline that will link to Russia and China, saying that we had discussed constructing a gas pipeline that will be linked to Russia and China as Moscow pivots to Asia amid conflict with the West.
The pipeline could also supply regions in the wide central Asian republic, which suffers from regular power shortages despite its extensive resources.
Kazakhstan proposed that Gazprom consider new transit routes for Russian gas to China, taking into account gas supply to the domestic market.”
a spokesperson for the national gas company QazaqGaz told AFP
Since the West charged a storm of sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, Moscow has desired to emphasize its pivot towards Asia’s huge energy market.
In 2022, Russian gas exports plummeted by 25 percent, but the amount of gas sent through the “Power of Siberia” pipeline to China hit record highs.
Gazprom is planning to start building the “Power of Siberia-2” gas pipeline in 2024 after the Nord Stream 2 gas link to Europe was abandoned amid the Ukraine conflict.
Russia has also converged links with energy-rich Uzbekistan, which has also faced energy shortages. According to local authorities, Uzbekistan will import natural gas from Russia for the first time on March 1.
Alikhan Smailov, Kazakhstan Prime Minister ordered authorities solve the issue of gasification of the northern and eastern regions of the country.
Despite the country’s resources, only just under 60 percent of the population has access to gas. The Kazakhstan government is also discussing building a pipeline between east and west Kazakhstan.
