Even the SCMP parrots this line we often hear that Europe pays more for the gas they get from Russia than China does. This is patent BS.
IIRC China was at one point paying some $160-180 USD per thousand cubic meters to Russia while Europe was paying $140 USD. This reflects the fact gas supplies in Asia are more limited and even LNG in Asia costs more than in Europe. A lot of people seem to think Russia is getting the same low prices the Central Asian gas countries got for their gas to China like a decade ago. But those contracts with Central Asia were signed when global gas prices were depressed. IIRC even Europe was paying like $80 USD then. Even Central Asian gas costs more now that it used to. And those Central Asian gas pipelines are far away from the final customers in China. China needs to build huge infrastructure and there is energy loss moving gas from Central Asia to Shanghai. Power of Siberia delivers gas directly into the industrial areas of northern China and not that far from Beijing. Power of Siberia 2 and Soyuz Vostok will also deliver to this zone which has huge energy demand and needs clean energy to fulfill the government's plan to improve air pollution in major Chinese cities and industrial areas currently powered by northern Chinese coal.
Finally. Rio Tinto have dragged their feet to keep the money flowing from their mines in Australia for way too long. China should have taken care of this problem long ago.
