China refused to invest in unprofitable russian gas pipeline – intelligence report

China has refused to finance the construction of a gas pipeline by the aggressor country's Gazprom company, which could compensate for about a fifth of russia's lost exports to Europe. This is stated in a report by the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine on Friday, September 5.

The intelligence report noted that the kremlin has been trying for over 20 years to persuade China to build a new gas pipeline, which would compensate Gazprom for about a fifth of its lost exports to Europe. However, the parties have not yet concluded a contract for the supply of gas, and have limited themselves to a memorandum of intent.

"Gazprom will be forced to finance the 2,600 km long pipeline project on its own: Beijing has refused to invest. The final price has also not been agreed upon. China insists on domestic Russian tariffs of USD 120–130 per thousand cubic meters, while Moscow offers a range of USD 265–285 – similar to Power of Siberia-1," the report says.

Gazprom's losses amounted to USD 11.6 billion in 2024 and another USD 134 million in the first half of 2025. The company's cash reserves are shrinking for the third year in a row – from USD 33 billion at the beginning of 2022 to USD 6.7 billion in June 2025. In addition, after the news of the signing of the memorandum, Gazprom's shares fell sharply, and its capitalization decreased by USD 1.24 billion.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, the European Parliament is considering proposals to accelerate the EU's refusal from russian gas one year earlier – until January 2027.