Beijing, Moscow in talks to develop coal deposits in Russia
- Russia’s deputy prime minister also says the country supports a ‘further increase of coal supplies’ to its neighbour
- It comes as China is trying to secure power supply for the winter months as it slowly recovers from an energy crisis
Speaking after a meeting of the Russia-China intergovernmental commission for energy cooperation, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak also said Russia supported a “further increase of coal supplies” to China.
“New long-term contracts will be considered in this regard, along with joint development of coal deposits in Russia, the Zashulanskoe coal deposit in the Trans-Baikal region in particular,” Novak said, according to a statement from the Russian government.
The statement said joint exploration and development of Russian onshore and continental shelf oil and gas reserves was also under consideration and the two sides had agreed to maintain steady operation of cross-border power transmission lines.
Chinese Vice-Premier Han Zheng told the virtual meeting that energy was the “most important, fruitful and wide-ranging area of practical cooperation” between the two countries, according to state news agency Xinhua.