Russia's state-run gas export monopoly Gazprom will start commercial negotiations with China on gas supplies on Monday, Pavel Oderov, head of Gazprom's international business department said.
"Commercial negotiations next week will be held in China where all these issues will be discussed," Oderov said in response to a question about possible Chinese project financing for gas supplies.
The companies plan to sign an export contract by mid-2011, having so far failed to come up with a final agreement on long-term prices. The contract will cover a 30 year period, with annual supply volumes reaching 30 billion cubic meters of gas.
A document on the basic terms of Russia gas supplies to China was signed on September 27, 2010 during an official visit by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to China. It set out the main commercial terms for future natural gas supplies, including volumes and the starting date, the 'take-or-pay' level, and the level of guaranteed payments.
The gas will be supplied to China by the $14 billion Altai pipeline project, Golubev said.
The new Altai pipeline will be part of the existing transmission route to Novosibirsk, with a follow-up extension across the mountains to the western part of the Russian-Chinese border. There it will tap into the Chinese West-East pipeline carrying gas to Shanghai.
Gazprom wants to complete the pipeline by the end of 2015.
MOSCOW, April 11 (RIA Novosti)
