Compressor Boosts Kazakh-China Pipe

Kazakhstan’s state-run KazMunaiGas together with the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) have commissioned a compressor station on branch C of the Kazakhstan-China gas pipeline, KazTransGas announced November  30. It comes a month after KazTransGas, owned by KazMunaiGas, concluded a 5bn m³/yr gas export contract with China.

Construction and further operation of the project in southern Kazakhstan was realised by Asian Gas Pipeline, a joint venture between KazTransGas and Trans-Asia Gas Pipeline.

The new gas infrastructure will increase the capacity of the branch C of the gas pipeline and increase the volume of gas transportation to 25bn m³/yr. Last year, China took 29.5bn m³ Turkmen gas, less than 0.5bn m³ Kazakh and 4.3bn m³ of Uzbek gas through the three branches of that pipeline, all of which pass through Kazakhstan.

The Kazakhstan-China natural gas pipeline has transported more than 200bn m³ of gas since it started operating till November 29, CNPC said in a statement recently.

The pipeline was commissioned in December 2009 and has three routes with combined capacity of 55bn m³. It passes through Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, eventually reaching Horgos in Xinjiang, China. Central Asian countries account for more than 15% of China's total demand.

The fourth route, Line D, is being built; once completed is projected to deliver 30bn m³/yr of gas.  

Dalga Khatinoglu