Transneft

02-18-2009 Russia, China sign $25 billion energy deal Beijing signed a deal with Moscow Tuesday to lend $25 billion to two Russian oil firms, which in turn will sell 15 million tons of crude oil a year to China for the next 20 years. The agreement will ensure the long-awaited extension of Russia's Siberia-Pacific coast pipeline to China, too. The pipeline project, agreed on late last year, will see the extension of the pipeline from the Siberian city of Skovorodino, 70 km north of the Sino-Russian border, to China. China will lend $15 billion to Russia's state-owned oil firm Rosneft and $10 billion to pipeline monopoly Transneft. China Development Bank (CDB) provided the credit for the deal, according to the Associated Press (AP). The Russian firms, on the other hand, will ensure China gets 300000 barrels of crude a day for 20 years. China and Russia signed seven agreements on energy cooperation package programs, Xinhua said, quoting a Foreign Ministry official. The $25-billion deal is seen as a boost to Russian energy firms because the global financial crisis and a drastic drop in the crude prices have left them struggling to raise capital, AP said. The agreement was signed by Vice-Premier Wang Qishan and Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin in Beijing at the third round of energy talks between the two countries. "We hope the two sides will give full play to the bilateral energy negotiation mechanism to promote bilateral energy cooperation," Wang told Sechin. Sechin <b>...</b>