Wed, 14 September 2011

A ceremony has been held in Turkistan, Kazakhstan, to mark the commencement of welding on Phase II of the Kazakhstan – China gas pipeline.

Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister Umirzak Shukeyev read a congratulatory letter from Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev at the ceremony.

Other notable figures in attendance included Chinese government representative Liu Tienan – who is the National Development and Reform Commission Deputy Chairman and also the National Energy Administration Chief – Kazakhstan Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Sauat Mukhametbaevich Mynbayev, KazMunayGas President Kairgeldy Kabyldin, China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) Vice President Wang Dongjin, Southern Kazakhstan Oblast Governor Askar Myrzakhmetov, and PetroChina Vice President Sun Bo.

The 1,475 km pipeline is part of the 6,500 km, 42 inch diameter Turkmenistan – China gas pipeline. It will start from Beyneu, Mangghystau, and will meet the Central Asia-China Gas Pipeline at Shymkent, Kazakhstan. The pipeline will have an initial design capacity of 10 Bcm/a, which can be expanded to 15 Bcm/a.