Russian exports to Asia

Russia produces 10 million barrels of crude oil and about 600 BCM of natural gas.

It exports about 200 BCM of the gas. The resources of Asiatic Russia and the needs of China, Japan, and the two Koreas create enormous potential for economic partnerships.

Within its ‘turn to the East’ Russia has prioritized its relations with China. Like the United States, Russia sees the rise of China as one of the most significant developments of the twenty-first century.

The 1990s

Russia made a lot effort to advance into the energy markets of Korea, China and Japan who were heavily dependent on import from Middle East since the mid-1990s.

The year 2009

The Eastern Gas Program brought about the first tangible result in the year 2009. The 4,188km-long ESPO (Eastern Siberia Pacific Ocean) oil pipeline exports crude oil from Russia to the Asian Pacific markets of Japan, China and Korea. The first phase of the pipeline was completed in 2009 and the second phase was completed in December 2012. It made possible for Russia to export 600,000 barrels of oil to Asian countries.

In 2009 Russian LNG began to be exported to Asia for the first time through LNG export facilities in the southern part of Sakhalin.

The Period 2013-2014

Russia’s oil and gas export to Asia entered into the expansion phase in 2013 and 2014. On December 24 in 2012, the 2nd section of ESPO was completed. China’s president Xi Jinping chose Russia as the first place to visit since his inauguration.

The most notable part in the agreement between Xi Jinping and Putin is that China will import 1 million barrels of oil per day from Russia by 2018 and will become the largest importer of Russian oil surpassing Germany.

Russia and China signed contracts on supplying 28 BCM and 30 BCM of gas through pipelines in May and November respectively in 2014. Therefore it is expected that totally 82 BCM of gas including 14 BCM of LNG will be supplied by 2020.

Russia-Japan relations

In September 2014, Russia reportedly proposed constructing an undersea LNG transport pipeline from Sakhalin to the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. The pipeline would be the first of its kind for Japan, which does not have LNG pipelines connecting it to any other countries.

Russia-South Korea relations

President Park Geun-Hye of South Korea announced in October 2013 her plan to expand economic cooperation with Eurasian countries for more trade opportunities. Called the Eurasian Initiative, the policy is centered on the idea that exchanges between South Korea and Eurasian nations, especially Russia, will help induce an opening up in the reclusive North, which lies in between, thus allaying the long-running military and diplomatic tensions on the Korean Peninsula.