Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, Sept. 5 /Trend H. Hasanov/
President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov and Chinese President Xi Jinping, who was in the country on a state visit (September 3-4), came to an agreement on the fourth direction of the trans-national Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline.
"The new gas artery will be constructed along the route Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan-Tajikistan-Kyrgyzstan-China. Additional volumes of the natural gas will be directed from Turkmenistan to China," Berdimuhamedov said after the meeting with Jinping.
Turkmenistan's state information service Turkmen Dovlat Khabarlary cited this statement in its material.
Gas cooperation between the two countries began after the signing of the general agreement in 2006 on the construction of a gas pipeline from Turkmenistan to China and supplies of natural gas.
In 2009 the project was implemented and the pipeline that runs through Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan was commissioned, and the necessary production and transportation infrastructure was created.
"This powerful gas pipeline will create the opportunity to increase in the near future the amount of Turkmen gas delivered to China up to 40 billion cubic meters in a year," the Turkmen leader said in Ashgabad during the negotiations.
In 2011, a framework agreement on deliveries of additional 25 billion cubic meters of Turkmen gas in a year was signed.
"At the moment the implementation of this agreement is started," Berdimuhamedov said, adding that its practical realization will allow increasing the total volume of Turkmen oil annually delivered to China to 65 billion cubic meters.
At this stage it is necessary to solve a number of important issues regarding the route of the new branch of gas pipeline, creation of additional accompanying infrastructure, financing of this project.