Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated on Monday that "there is no doubt that Russia and China will reach an agreement on the 'Power of Siberia 2' gas pipeline," following a report by the Financial Times indicating that the deal has encountered hurdles due to China's pricing demands. He highlighted in a press conference that "talks concerning the pipeline will continue."
The pipeline is designed to transport 50 billion cubic meters of Russian gas to China annually. Peskov also mentioned that the commercial aspects of the negotiations would not be disclosed. According to the Financial Times report, "Russian attempts to finalize a major gas pipeline deal with China are facing obstacles." The newspaper noted that "discussions between Beijing and Moscow are stalled due to what Moscow considers 'unreasonable' demands regarding price levels and gas quantities."
The report added that China has requested to pay prices close to those in the existing Russian market and that it should only be obligated to purchase a small portion of the annual capacity of the pipeline, which stands at 50 billion cubic meters. On Monday, China stated that it "will continue to push for the strengthening of all forms of mutually beneficial cooperation with Russia and looks forward to deepening collaboration in the oil and gas sector."
