China increases gas imports

By Alimat Aliyeva

In January 2024, China reached a record level of natural gas imports, which amounted to 6.060 billion cubic meters, Azernews reports, citing foreign media outlets.

This figure is the highest in the history of the country's gas industry. Compared to January 2023 (4.481 billion cubic meters), the increase was 35%. Shipments also increased significantly compared to the previous month, December 2023 (5.527 billion cubic meters).

China receives pipeline gas from five countries: Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Myanmar. It is expected that the increase in gas supplies from Gazprom via the Power of Siberia highway was one of the reasons for the increase in imports. On an annual basis, exports increased by 20 million cubic meters per day. Shipments have also increased by about 10 million cubic meters per day since mid-November, which could lead to an additional increase in shipments to China since the beginning of January. In addition, due to the start of Russian gas supplies to Uzbekistan, there may be changes in the gas balance in the Central Asian region, which will expand export opportunities to China.