Israel-Iran Conflict Spurs China to Reconsider Russian Gas Pipeline
https://www.wsj.com/world/china-russia-gas-pipeline-iran-conflict-e19523b3?mod=WSJ_home_mediumtopper_pos_4
The war between Israel and Iran has revived Chinese leaders’ interest in a pipeline that would carry Russian natural gas to China, according to people close to Beijing’s decision-making, potentially jump-starting a project that has been stalled for years.
The Power of Siberia 2 pipeline project has been mired in disagreements over pricing and ownership terms, as well as Chinese concerns about relying too heavily on Russia for its energy supplies. But the recent war in the Middle East has given Beijing reason to reconsider the reliability of the oil and natural gas it gets from the region, the people said, even as a fragile cease-fire between Israel and Iran takes hold…
But, even with a cease-fire in place, the recent conflict has spurred Beijing to cast about for alternatives, the people and analysts say. Beijing is also looking to increase oil purchases from Russia, which supplies around one-fifth of China’s oil, analysts say. Moscow has been pushing to boost its energy sales to its neighbor as it needs cash to fund its war in Ukraine.
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