Beijing remains uncommitted on Power of Siberia 2 plans

Russia’s pivot to the east is encountering barriers among the Central Asian republics and due to China’s reluctance to become too dependent on Russian gas

China’s continued ambivalence over the high-profile Power of Siberia 2 (PoS 2) gas pipeline is prompting Russia to consider new options for supplying China that involve Central Asia. The strategy could see Russia expand its presence in Central Asia at a time when both Moscow and Beijing are competing for influence in the energy-rich region. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s latest visit to Beijing in mid-May failed once again to energise protracted negotiations over PoS 2, a new pipeline that would pump 50bcm/yr to northern China via Mongolia. Gazprom and China’s state-controlled CNPC have been in painstaking talks over the project, but in a sign that little progress was expected from the t