Staff members from PipeChina conduct a daily inspection of the China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline in Qinhuangdao, North China's Hebei Province on November 1, 2022, aiming to strengthen inspections of the route and ensure the daily consumption of gas for households in the Beijing-Hebei-Tianjin region of North China. Photo: VCG

The China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline has raised its daily gas transmission capacity to 61 million cubic meters since its operation three years ago, and the annual gas transmission volume is expected to exceed 22 billion cubic meters in 2023, China Media Group (CMG) reported on Monday. 

In 2022, the annual gas transmission volume has exceeded 15 billion cubic meters and the pipeline has delivered a total of over 30 billion cubic meters of natural gas to China over the past three years.

The northern section from Heihe to Changling in Northeast China's Jilin Province was put into use in 2019. At the initial stage of commissioning, the daily gas transmission capacity of the pipeline was only 15 million cubic meters, with the annual gas transmission capacity less than 4 billion cubic meters.

Song Fei, an official from PipeChina, said that the transmission volume of the pipeline has been growing steadily since its commissioning three years ago. 

According to Song, since January 2023, the gas transmission capacity of the pipeline will be further increased to 61 million cubic meters per day. "The annual gas transmission volume is expected to exceed 22 billion cubic meters in 2023," Song noted.

The under-river tunnel across the Yangtze River, a key construction project of the China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline was completed in December 2022. It will allow Russian gas to cross the Yangtze River to reach Shanghai, laying the foundation for the full completion of the landmark China-Russia energy cooperation project.

The Yangtze tunnel is the key to the east-route natural gas pipeline, which is expected to be completed and put into operation in 2025, media reports said.

The full pipeline spans more than 8,000 kilometers, with a 3,000-kilometer section in Russia and a 5,111-kilometer stretch in China.