BEIJING, Oct. 23 (UPI) -- Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said in Beijing major investments are in the works for natural gas supplies in energy-hungry China.
Medvedev said Russia is on the cusp of reaching multibillion-dollar natural gas supply deals with China, which, with its expanding economy, is fast becoming the world's leading energy consumer.
Officials with Russian natural gas company Gazprom met this week with their Chinese counterparts to discuss potential agreements in the energy sector.
"These agreements that we are on the way to reaching, in particular concerning gas, will soon become [official] documents," Medvedev was quoted by Russia's state-run news agency RIA Novosti as saying during a state visit to Beijing Tuesday.
Russian energy company Novatek said Tuesday it reached a deal to supply at least 3 million tons of liquefied natural gas to China National Petroleum Corp. under the terms of a 15-year contract.
"We welcome the achievement of a mutually beneficial agreement on LNG supplies to the fast-growing Chinese market," Leonid Mikhelson, chairman of Novatek's board, said in a statement.
Russia is the world's largest natural gas supplier.
