Third phase of Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline ready by 2013 - executive (repeat)
Astana. June 16. INTERFAX - Kazakhstan and China hope to complete construction of the third phase of the Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline by 2013, the president of KazMunayGas, Kairgeldy Kabyldin, told journalists in Astana June 16.
"We will start building [this year] and plan to finish construction in about a year and half," Kabyldin said.
Kabyldin confirmed that KazMunayGas and China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) plan to boost the designed annual throughput capacity of the pipeline by about 25 billion cubic meters, and said the pipeline would supply gas sourced in Turkmenistan.
Kabyldin earlier said the annual throughput capacity of Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan-Kazakhstan-China pipeline might be increased by 20 billion cubic meters.
He said the project participants had already commissioned two phases of the Asian gas pipeline with a throughput capacity of 8 billion cubic meters of gas per year.
"We are currently working on the construction of compressor stations, which will boost transit capacity of the two lines to 30 billion cubic meters on the Turkmenistan-China section. The Chinese side has also proposed increasing the volume of transit from Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan by another 20 billion cubic meters - 10 billion of Turkmen gas and 10 billion of Uzbek gas," Kabyldin said.