Gazprom reviews Chinese pipeline details

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MOSCOW, Dec. 7 (UPI) -- Russian natural gas company Gazprom said it discussed with Chinese officials terms surrounding a pipeline for eastern gas deliveries.

Gazprom Chief Executive Officer Alexei Miller met with President of the China National Petroleum Corp. Zhou Jiping in Moscow to discuss bilateral cooperation.

Miller said special attention was paid to development of the Altai pipeline to China.

The Altai pipeline would run from natural gas fields in Western Siberia to the northern Chinese border. The planned 1,700-mile pipeline could carry as much as 1.05 trillion cubic feet of natural gas per year.

"The Altai gas pipeline construction will start only after the gas purchase and sale agreement is inked with the Chinese party," Gazprom said in a statement.

In July, Russian technicians from Gazprom visited China to examine shale natural gas fields under development by CNPC.

The country hasn't produced shale gas on a commercial scale because of complex geology and a lack of domestic experience. Beijing aims to produce as much as 230 billion cubic feet of shale gas per year by 2015.