With the production of Zhongwei-Huangpo pipeline of the east segment of pipeline 2 of the West-East natural gas transmission project, the construction of pipeline 2 of the West-East natural gas transmission project, a key project during the 11th Five-year Plan Period, has moved an important step forward. During the 11th Five-year Plan Period, China has accelerated the layout of oil and gas pipelines. Currently, the nationwide oil and gas pipeline networks have been completed. In the future, oil and gas supplying and guarantee ability of China will be further enhanced.
Western natural gases enter Hunan and Hubei ahead of time
On Dec. 5, 2010, the Zhongwei-Huangpo pipeline of the east segment of pipeline 2 of the West-East natural gas transmission project was put into production. The western natural gases enter Hunan and Hubei ahead of time. Residents and enterprises in provinces along the pipeline such as Gansu, Shaanxi, Henan and Hubei can use natural gases from the Central Asia.
The pipeline 2 of the West-East natural gas transmission project starts from Huoerguosi, Xinjiang from the west, and arrives in Shanghai in the east and Guangzhou and Hong Kong in the south. The project bestrides 15 provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities and special administration districts in China.
It has a total length of 8653 kilometers and the planned annual transportation volume of 30 billion cubic meters. It is China s first large-scaled pipeline project for introduction of natural gas resources from foreign countries. The West-East natural gas transmission project is divided into east and west segments with Zhongwei, Ningxia as the boundary.
The Huoerguosi-Zhongwei trunk line and Zhongwei-Jingbian liaison line form the west segment while the Zhongwei-Guangzhou is the east segment.
The Zhongwei-Huangpo truck line has a total length of 1,393 kilometers. It starts from Zhongwei Liaison Station in Ningxia and arrives in Huangpo Gas Transmission and Compressor Station in Wuhan after passing Gansu, Shaanxi, Henan and Hubei. Besides providing gases to aforesaid regions, the pipeline will supply gases to Hunan, Sichuan and Chongqing through Zhongwu Line and Huaiwu Line.
The pipeline 2 of the West-East natural gas transmission project connects with the China-Central Asia natural gas pipeline to the east. The China-Central Asia natural gas pipeline starts from the boundary of Turkmenistan and O'zbekiston in the east, bestrides central regions of O'zbekiston and southern regions in Kazakstan, and enters China from Huoerguosi, Xinjiang.
On Dec. 14, 2009, the China-Central Asia natural gas pipeline was completed and put into production. On Dec. 31, 2009, the pipeline 2 (west segment) of the West-East natural gas transmission project was completed and put into production. On Jan. 20, 2010, the pipeline 2 (west segment) of the West-East natural gas transmission project with the total length of 2745.9 kilometers meets the gas supply conditions. Construction of the east segment of pipeline 2 of the West-East natural gas transmission project was started on Feb. 7, 2009. The pipeline will meet the production conditions in 2011.
Statistics showed that the west segment of the pipeline 2 of the West-East natural gas transmission project started production during the 11th Five-year Plan Period and the West-East natural gas transmission project started production before had transmitted 66 billion cubic meters of natural gas to west China by the end of September 2010, equaling to a reduction of coal transportation of 78.26 million tons and a reduction of carbon dioxide emissions of 290 million tons.
Natural gas supply and demand conflicts in Hunan and Hubei are expected to be alleviated
In the interview, the reporter noted that the public and the enterprises had placed high expectations on the transmission of western gases to the Hunan and Hubei. Mr. Dong, a driver of Wuhan Jianyuan Taxi Company, said that he had to wait for three hours to add the natural gas when the supplies of natural gas were intensified, bringing great losses to taxi operation. The entry of western natural gas into Hubei may put an end to the queuing to add natural gas.
Hu Ailin, an old man living in Hongde Building of Industrial and Commercial Institute of the South-Central University for Nationalities, is quite excited for using the natural gas. He said that after the opening of natural gas, he can use the natural gas by turning the switch. It is quite convenient, high-efficient and clean. He said that cooking now is faster than it is before, and costs less.
Wang Dajian, deputy head of Hanyang Steel Factory of Wuhan Iron & Steel Group, has deep feeling on shortage of natural gas. He told the reporter that production of the factory will stop due to shortage of natural gas. Production of the factory was stopped for almost half of the time in last year, and many contracts can t be completed.
Moreover, termination of gas supplies from time to time had brought great damages to equipment of the steel factory. Wang Dajian said that entry of western natural gases into Hubei solve their worries. In the past, the factory dared not to accept too many orders due to worries on termination of natural gas supplies.
Now, such worries had been removed.
Zhou Deyi, deputy general manager of the PetroChina North China Gas Marketing Company, indicated that the production of Zhongwei-Huangpo Trunk Line will alleviate the intensified supplies of natural gases in Hunan and Hubei. He explained that the natural gas demands of Hunan and Hubei had increased at the annual speed of 41% in the past few years.
Before the production of Zhongwei-Huangpo Trunk Line, the daily natural gas demand was 9.8 million cubic meters, while the daily supply volume was only 6.6 million cubic meters. The conflicts between supplies and demands were obvious. With the production of Zhongwei-Huangpo Trunk Line, the daily supplying volume is expected to reach eight million cubic meters.
In the future, the daily supplying volume is expected to reach 10.5 million cubic meters in addition to the natural gas supplies of the branch line of the pipeline 2 of the West-East natural gas transmission project.
Oil and gas trunk line that covers the nation primarily established
According to the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), the company has exerted the strategy of resources, market and internationalization in the 11th Five-year Plan period. It has used the two resources and the two markets coordinatively, and accelerated the layout of oil and gas pipelines, greatly improving the supply and guarantee ability of oil and gas.
In Northwest China, the first trans-national crude oil pipeline in China China-Kazakstan Pipeline was opened thoroughly in July 2006. On Dec. 14, 2009, the Central Asia Natural Gas Pipeline Project that bestrides China, Turkey, Kazakstan and O'zbekiston was put into production. In Southwest China, construction of the Sino- Burma Crude Oil Pipeline with the total length of 1631 kilometers and the Sino-Burma Natural Gas Pipeline with the total length of 1727 kilometers was progressed smoothly.
In the sea, the crude oil terminal and LNG projects had developed smoothly. The strategy arrangements of four major oil and gas pipelines in Northeast China, Northwest China, Southwest China and offshore had been completed.
The project for eastward transmission of natural gas from Sichuan, another natural gas transmission pipeline transverse east and west constructed and operated by the Sinopec Group, a key project of the country during the 11th Five-year Plan Period, had been put into commercial operation on Aug. 31. The trunk line and branch line of the project radiate more than 70 cities, thousands of enterprises and over 200 million population, and can transmit 12 billion cubic meters of purified gases each year.
The project can increase the natural gas supplying volume along the pipeline to increase by 29.1% year-on-year. The one-time consumption structure of clean energies in cities along the pipeline had increased from 3.72% to 4.23%.
Thus, China has formed an energy pipeline that connects east with west, south with north as well as foreign countries, and gradually formed the energy supply situation of diversified guarantee, network-based resource distribution and automatic management of pipelines. Statistics showed that total length of crude oil pipelines is over 19,000 kilometers. That of finished oil pipelines is 16,000 kilometers and that of natural gas pipelines is over 33,000 kilometers. The total length of oil and gas pipelines reached over 68,000 kilometers.
According to Zhao Yujian, director general of the China Petroleum Pipeline Bureau, construction of nationwide trunk lines of oil and gas is favorable for further deepening the cooperation between China and international energy market, promoting the exchanges and cooperation between China and related countries in energy and other sectors and realizing mutual benefits. In the meantime, it will greatly promote the development of pipeline transportation, promote the formation of new energy supply structure in China and accelerate the optimization of energy consumption structure of China.
