The main gas pipeline stretches around 6,700 kilometers in total length, with a substantial portion, about 2,700 kilometers, planned to traverse within Russia’s borders. This vast underground corridor is intended to weave through key regions, linking production areas with demand centers and strengthening cross-border energy connections that have long been in the planning stages. The ambition is to create a long, continuous conduit that can reliably move large volumes of natural gas from Siberian fields toward diverse consumption markets and neighboring economies.
Initial routing analyses indicate that the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline will enter the Russian landscape through the Irkutsk region, eventually threading through three districts of Buryatia, before crossing into neighboring Mongolia. From there, the project is expected to integrate with China’s West-East Gas Pipeline, enabling blue fuel to flow toward major urban hubs, including Shanghai, and potentially reshaping regional energy trade flows. The envisioned linkage would form a trans-Eurasian gas corridor, capable of reinforcing gas supply security for China while offering Russia a broader outlet for its gas resources. This cross-border architecture underscores a strategic shift toward multi-country energy collaborations that extend beyond bilateral ties to influence regional energy economics.
Despite the broad outlines and strategic importance, the project is not yet fully realized. The Prime Minister of Mongolia has stated that a precise schedule for the pipeline’s passage through Mongolian territory has not been finalized. This point was communicated to international observers by the Financial Times, highlighting the ongoing uncertainties surrounding timelines, permitting, and infrastructure coordination across borders. In practice, a complex matrix of approvals, environmental assessments, and financing arrangements must align before construction can proceed in earnest.
Earlier discussions between Russian and Chinese leaders, dating back to December 2021, laid the groundwork for close cooperation on this ambitious project. Since then, Mongolian authorities have indicated that a feasibility study has been completed, which paves the way for more concrete planning. If construction were to begin in 2024 as some officials suggest, the timeline would still hinge on multi-national agreement, funding, and the resolution of cross-border logistics. The broader economic calculus also considers how transit tariffs might influence Mongolia’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, offering an avenue for fiscal relief and diversification of revenue streams amid ongoing global disruptions.
- The broader regional energy framework is a part of the evolving map of Eurasian gas trade, where interconnections shape both supply resilience and pricing dynamics in markets across North America and Asia.
Photo: ITAR-TASS / Valery Sharifulin