The main gas pipeline "Power of Siberia" is the most ambitious project of our time. From the field to Blagoveshchensk: Gazprom has completed the filling of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline Who is involved in the construction of the power of Siberia

The Power of Siberia gas pipeline is a joint project of PJSC Gazprom and CNPC, the leader in the oil and gas industry in China. It is a main gas pipeline through which natural gas from several fields in Russia will be delivered to China and the cities of Primorsky Krai. The length of the natural gas transportation system will exceed 2150 km with an annual capacity of 61 billion m3.

From the history of the project

In 2014, Gazprom and CNPC sign a bilateral agreement on the purchase of gas from China with transportation via a new route. The creation of a gas pipeline connecting several major fields is being negotiated. According to the provisions of the agreement, more than 38 billion m3 of gas will be sent to China annually. The launch is scheduled for the end of 2019. The gas pipeline being laid will be the largest in the eastern part of Russia.

However, back in 2012, Vladimir Putin ordered the development of a gas pipeline project in Yakutia and the Far East. The name of the project was chosen from hundreds of options as part of a competition. At the end of 2012, the president announced the winning name at a meeting of the State Council - it was Power of Siberia. The agreements reached later with CNPC served as a powerful impetus for the speedy implementation of the adopted project.

Construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline

  • Since September 2014, Gazprom has been carrying out preparatory work for the construction of the Power of Siberia. At the same time, the starting section of the transportation system was laid - from the Chayandinskoye field to Blagoveshchensk (the territory bordering the PRC). The length of the pipe was about 2,200 km.
  • Next, a section of the gas pipeline is being built connecting the Chayandinskoye field with the Kovykta (Irkutsk region). The length of the laid pipe is about 800 km.
  • The next stage in the implementation of the Power of Siberia project was the development of the capacities of the gas transmission system at the 1st section of the pipeline. In September 2016, an agreement was signed for laying a pipe crossing under the waters of the Amur. The Chinese partners of Gazprom assumed responsibility for its construction.
  • In April 2017, CNPC begins the construction of the crossing with the involvement of contractors and in May opens a checkpoint that ensures the free movement of people and the operation of special equipment in the border area.

During the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline, Irkutsk and neighboring regions received the potential to create a lot of jobs. In addition, the project required the involvement of contractors - Gazprom held more than 30 tenders with a total budget of over 184.3 billion rubles. Major contracts are awarded to Stroytransgaz, which receives more than 18 billion rubles without tenders for the construction of access roads to Chayanda.

Another major contractor of the project was Stroygazmontazh. Interestingly, when laying a gas pipeline, only pipes of domestic production are used. In August 2014, Gazprom began to actively involve its own subsidiaries in contract work. In September of the same year, a 10% discount on pipes was achieved by making an advance payment. In 2015, Gazprom refuses to attract a general contractor.

It should be noted that during the construction of the Power of Siberia, contractors were not always selected according to the tender regulations. The Chayanda-Lensk section is transferred to Stroytransgaz. Later, Stroygazmontazh was chosen as the only contractor for the construction of gas pipeline facilities with a budget of more than 197.5 billion rubles without tenders.

Map of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline

The Power of Siberia appears on the map as a gigantic project. It covers three regions - Yakutia, Irkutsk and Amur regions. The gas pipeline will connect the Chayandinskoye field with the Kovykta field and send gas to consumers in the cities of Primorsky Krai and China. When developing the Power of Siberia project, the gas pipeline map was drawn up taking into account the need to limit the cost of laying pipes, reduce their length and unite key gas production centers. This allowed us to significantly save the budget and speed up the work.

The meaning of the "Power of Siberia"

The Power of Siberia project was conceived back in 2012. The purpose of its creation was the supply of gas to the Far Eastern regions and countries of the "eastern" direction. During its implementation, Gazprom managed to introduce advanced technologies. As a result, the gas pipeline route was successfully laid in a difficult climate - the Power of Siberia pipes were able to overcome permafrost zones, wetlands and seismically active areas. They withstand extreme temperature changes, are characterized by resistance to corrosion, cope with high pressure of the working environment.

Most of the installed equipment is designed to operate without maintenance for 20 years. The project is of great importance for the economy and the social sphere. With the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline, Irkutsk, Yakutia and other regions received new infrastructure, jobs and huge tax payments. Thousands of people are currently working on the construction of the gas pipeline on a rotational basis, in the future it is planned to create permanent jobs.

The Power of Siberia gas pipeline today

In September 2018, representatives of Gazprom announced that more than 93% of the gas pipeline was ready. According to media reports, it remains to weld about 40 km of pipes of the linear part. As of September 5 this year, more than 2,000 km of pipes have been laid and welded in the section from the Chayandinskoye field in Yakutia to the border with China. Thus, the rumors that the delivery of the project could be postponed for 2 years were not confirmed.

Recall that Power of Siberia is planned to be used for gas supplies to China from December 2019. The total length of the gas pipeline will be about 4,000 km, and 8 modern compressor stations will ensure its operation. The project has already been marked as one of the largest not only in Russia but also in Asia. At the same time, representatives of Gazprom do not rule out the prospects for its development and further expansion.

Video taken from youtube.com, user channel "Russia 24"

In the light of recent geopolitical events, Russia has begun to give preference to its eastern neighbors as its main strategic partners. The greatest interest began to represent China as the most dynamically developing state. One of the points of convergence of interests was the issue of ensuring resource supply. In this regard, a large-scale project "The Power of Siberia" was concluded, the initial duration of which is 30 years.

General information about the Power of Siberia project

The essence of the Power of Siberia project is the construction of a new gas pipeline oriented to the east. At his expense, in the future it is planned to transport gas not only to the eastern Russian regions, but also to export it to Asian countries. The Power of Siberia project was signed on a bilateral basis under the patronage of OAO Gazprom on the part of the Russian Federation and CNPC on the part of China.

The production capacities of the Power of Siberia pipeline are capable of supplying not only Russian and Chinese consumers with gas, but also supplying liquefied natural gas for export to Japan.

The preliminary cost of the Power of Siberia project at the first stages was 800 billion rubles, but the construction of the Power of Siberia is currently estimated at 1.1 trillion rubles. rubles. Moreover, these amounts include only the costs for the installation of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline. The total cost of the "Power of Siberia" is much higher, because. includes expenses for the construction of a gas processing plant and the improvement of strategically significant fields.

The Chayandinskoye natural gas field was chosen as the source of supplies, as the nearest one in this region. The map of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline is very extensive; the total length of the projected pipeline exceeds 3,000 km. To ensure the reliability of supplies, the gas pipeline is planned to be additionally integrated with the existing line of the Kovykta field. The blue fuel reserves of the Kovykta field are estimated at 1.5 trillion. cubic meters. Chayandinsk reserves are not so rich, they amount to 1.2 trillion. cubic meters of gas.

According to the plans, the Power of Siberia gas pipeline will run through several regions at once, its route on the map includes the Amur, Irkutsk regions and the Republic of Sakha. The program provides for the construction of a border section of the highway under the bed of the Amur River.

Technical characteristics of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline

  1. The export capacity of the transport main is 38 billion m 3 of gas per year.
  2. The length of the route is more than 3000 km.
  3. The working pressure at the outlet is 9.8 MPa.
  4. The diameter of the pipelines of the network is 1420 mm.

All pipes are covered with a special innovative material that provides high network insulation and almost completely eliminates material corrosion. In addition, in places of tectonic faults and seismic activity, pipes are used that can withstand severe deformation.

The preliminary deadlines for the completion of the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline are set for the end of 2019.

Background to the construction of the Power of Siberia pipeline

Initially, the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline was supposed to provide gas to the eastern regions of the country. The Power of Siberia project entered phase 2 after the signing of an agreement on the export of energy resources to China. According to him:

  • the Russian side undertakes to ensure the supply of 38 billion cubic meters;
  • the specified volume of supplies must be received annually;
  • the start of deliveries is scheduled for December 20, 2019;
  • The term of the agreement is 30 years with the possibility of extension.

The host side plans to complete the entire range of work on the project this year. The Russian company "Power of Siberia" should be completed only by the end of 2019.

The latest news in 2018 regarding the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline is such that Gazprom, due to Western sanctions, is forced to change the previously existing practice of selecting contractors. Those companies that had experience in implementing large international projects were blacklisted. As a result, they cannot import a number of necessary equipment.

As a result, the management of Gazprom decided to abandon contracts with large contractors for the implementation of the Power of Siberia project and split the entire range of work into many lots. At present, the laying of the highway involved:

  • Stroygazmontazh;
  • Stroytransgaz;
  • Irkutskneftegazstroy and other companies.

It is planned to attract at least 15 firms to the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline.

Negative feedback about the Power of Siberia project

Despite the great strategic importance, not the most encouraging news often arises around the Power of Siberia. So back in 2011, the leadership of Gazprom was forced to revise the previously approved route due to the appeal of the small peoples of the north living in the territory of the proposed construction.

In addition, a number of experts believe that the benefit for Russia from the "Power of Siberia" is very doubtful. China is gaining big advantages, while the profitability for Russia, given the colossal financial costs, seems to be extremely low.

However, in general, experts agree that the "Forces of Siberia" is a successful project with a high payback in the future. After all, not only China, but also India appears among the promising buyers of blue fuel. In addition, a significant increase in the Far East region is planned. Analysts believe that gasification will give a powerful impetus to the development of the region. New vacancies will appear at mining and gas processing enterprises. The presence of stable supplies of energy resources will provide an opportunity to launch new industries. On the part of the state, new startups in the Far East region will be further stimulated through budget subsidies.

Data on the Power of Siberia gas pipeline today

The construction of the "Power of Siberia" is in full swing. The degree of readiness of the highway is 93%. 2,010 km of pipes have already been welded and laid from the fields to the border with China. At present, the entire range of efforts is aimed at completing the construction of an underwater gas pipeline across the Amur River, which is currently only 78% complete. The underwater main consists of two branches, the first of which is completely ready, the installation of the second tunnel is underway. At the same time, a compressor station is being built, located on the border of the two states.

In general, the latest news for today is that by the end of 2018, the throughput capacity of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline will be 5 billion cubic meters per year. To transfer the system to full capacity, it remains to lay 2.29 thousand km of the main line.

  1. Initially, Gazprom planned to build the Power of Siberia gas pipeline using an advance provided by the Chinese side in exchange for a future discount on gas transportation. However, in order not to reduce the cost of supplies, it was decided to independently finance the project.
  2. The management of Gazprom decided to use only Russian-made pipes in the program. They have a special internal coating that reduces energy consumption for gas transportation by reducing friction.
  3. In order to come up with a name for the project, a competition was held, according to the results of which the choice fell on the "Power of Siberia".

The pipeline of the Gazprom company, designed in Eastern Siberia for the supply of natural gas from Yakutia to the countries of the Asia-Pacific region.

Source: http://www.gazprom.ru/about/production/projects/pipelines/ykv/

Characteristics of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline

The Power of Siberia will become a common gas transmission system for the Irkutsk and Yakutsk gas production centers and will transport gas from these centers through Khabarovsk to Vladivostok.

At the first stage, the main gas pipeline "Yakutia - Khabarovsk - Vladivostok" will be built, at the second stage the Irkutsk center will be connected by a gas pipeline with the Yakutsk center.

The route of the GTS route will run along the route of the existing main oil pipeline "Eastern Siberia - the Pacific Ocean", which will optimize the cost of infrastructure and energy supply. The GTS route will overcome, among other things, swampy, mountainous and seismically active areas.

The gas pipeline will be built almost entirely from pipes of domestic production. About 11,700 specialists will be involved in the construction of the first stage of the Power of Siberia, and about 3,000 more people will operate the gas pipeline.

Photo: http://www.gazprom.ru/about/production/projects/pipelines/ykv/

The GTS received its name based on the results of the competition.

The history of the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline

In October 2012, the Gazprom Management Committee made a final investment decision on the Chayandinskoye field development project, construction of the Yakutia-Khabarovsk-Vladivostok gas trunkline, and gas processing facilities in Belogorsk.

On May 21, 2014, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee and President of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) Zhou Jiping signed a contract for the supply of Russian pipeline gas to China. The contract for a period of 30 years provides for the export to China of 38 billion cubic meters. m of Russian gas per year.

In September 2014, the opening ceremony of the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline took place.

Technical characteristics of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline

  • length - about 4000 km (Yakutia - Khabarovsk - Vladivostok - about 3200 km, Irkutsk region - Yakutia - about 800 km);
  • diameter - 1420 mm;
  • working pressure - 9.8 MPa (100 atm.);
  • productivity - 61 billion cubic meters. m of gas per year.

Deadlines for the implementation of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline project

Commissioning of the first part of the Power of Siberia GTS - the Yakutia - Khabarovsk - Vladivostok gas pipeline - by the end of 2017.

Socio-economic development of the territory through which the Power of Siberia gas pipeline will pass

The expansion of Gazprom's activities in Yakutia is a serious stimulus for the growth of the region's socio-economic development. In particular, the construction of gas transmission facilities on its territory will provide an opportunity for the development of gasification.

The Yakutia - Khabarovsk - Vladivostok gas pipeline will pass, among other things, through the southern regions of Yakutia. The route of the gas pipeline was chosen in such a way as to gasify the maximum possible number of their settlements.

In addition, the creation of the Yakutsk gas production center will increase the level of employment of the local population. About 3,000 specialists will need to be involved in the operation of the gas pipeline and production facilities of Gazprom in the republic.

Today, Gazprom organizes training of specialists, including from among the residents of Yakutia, in Russian specialized educational centers, stimulates the development of new educational programs.

Export potential of Power of Siberia

A powerful resource base in the East, the consistent formation of large gas production centers and the creation of the necessary transport corridors will make it possible to organize here a new center for export deliveries of Russian gas, focused on the Asia-Pacific region.

The start of the development of the Chayandinskoye field and the implementation of the project for the construction of the Yakutia - Khabarovsk - Vladivostok gas pipeline made it possible, along with the "western" route of pipeline gas supplies, to start negotiations on the "eastern" route.

IA SakhaNews. An amazing feeling - to be involved in the construction of the "Power of Siberia"! 40 years ago, probably, with the same inspiration, journalists wrote about BAM, YuYATPK, the construction of the city of Neryungri ...

The "Power of Siberia" is a grandiose construction in its scale, and, of course, it concerns not only South Yakutia, but has, without exaggeration, world significance. The correspondent of IA SakhaNews visited the grandiose construction site, which is deployed in the South Yakut taiga, and today we offer his report to our readers.

START OF CONSTRUCTION

Active work on the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline in the Neryungri district began exactly a year ago - in February 2017. The total length of the pipeline will be 2 158,5 kilometers, of which 1 290,7 kilometers will pass through the territory of Yakutia, and 260 kilometers - through the territory of the Neryungri region. Last year, the Krasnodargazstroy company built temporary camps in Iyengra, Chulman, Bolshoi Khatymi and Maly Nimnyr. In total, Krasnodargazstroy, a subsidiary of LLC Stroygazmontazh, puts 1 124 kilometers of the main gas pipeline through the Aldan and Neryungri regions, and also partially through the Amur region to China. In other areas, Lengazspetsstroy and Gazregion are also involved in construction, but only Krasnodar people work for us.

In general, of course, it all started even earlier. Instruction to Gazprom to work out a gas pipeline project with the working title "Yakutia - Khabarovsk - Vladivostok" President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin gave in October 2012. A competition was held for the best name for the gas pipeline, and on December 27, 2012, the winning name was announced - "The Power of Siberia". In May 2014, Gazprom and the Chinese company CNPC (well known to the non-Ryungri people through the Eastern Siberia-Pacific Ocean oil trunk pipeline) signed a contract for 30 years to supply gas to China.

According to the contract, 38 billion cubic meters of gas should be supplied per year, the total amount of the contract is 400 billion dollars.

On September 1, 2014, Vladimir Putin launched the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline. It is curious that this happened in Yakutsk, in the area of ​​Us Khatyn. We regularly visit Ysyakh Tuymaada there, but the gas pipeline, strictly speaking, will not pass through this sacred place. However, the ceremony of welding the first joint was of great symbolic importance, because this is a vital construction site for the whole of Yakutia.

Gazprom Transgaz Tomsk is responsible for the construction of the Power of Siberia on the part of the Gazprom Group. With the CEO of this organization Anatoly Titov We managed to talk in the evening of the same day.

The route of the route is laid along the operating main oil pipeline "Eastern Siberia - the Pacific Ocean", including in the Neryungri region. This allows you to optimize the cost of infrastructure and energy supply.

The pipe diameter is 1 420 mm, working pressure - 9,8 MPa. Eight compressor stations are under construction. Including five in the territory of Yakutia. The throughput should be 38 billion cubic meters of gas per year.

The main resource base for the "Power of Siberia" are two deposits in Yakutia - Chayandinskoye with reserves 1.2 trillion cubic meters and Kovykta - 1.5 trillion cubic meters. It is planned that the Chayandinskoye field will produce up to 25 billion cubic meters of gas and not less 1.5 million tons of oil.

The start of gas production is scheduled for December 2018, and the first export deliveries to China are scheduled for the end of 2019.

Since August 2014, more than 25 contractors. The total amount of announced tenders amounted to more than 184 billion rubles.

This is only about the first stage of construction of the gas pipeline. On the second one, a section will be built from the Kovykta field in the Irkutsk region to the Chayandinskoye field - about 800 km. At the third stage, it is planned to expand gas transmission capacities in the section from the Chayandinskoye field to Blagoveshchensk. But this is already a matter of the 20s, and we are still in 2018.

COZY ROOM

We are driving from Neryungri to the taiga on a cozy and surprisingly comfortable shift for this class of vehicles from Gazprom Transgaz Tomsk. Gazprom shifts are different from what we saw before - made on the basis of KamAZ, it is more comfortable and modern. The rules for transporting people are very strict. You can only ride here while sitting, all passengers are fixed with seat belts. No standing passengers.

The technological road is uneven, although quite passable, especially in winter, when it is not washed away by rains. On the street minus 40 but the car is warm and cozy. Large bright windows. Powerful electric oven in case of frost and air conditioning in case of heat. The driver sees absolutely everything that happens in the cabin for about 25 man using a video camera. So, if during an unforeseen stop someone starts to get ready for the exit, the driver announces over the radio: "Until we leave".

In the city, he sits on a shift with us Alexander Rakushin- First Deputy Head of the Department of RUSO in Neryungri. It should be noted that today OOO Gazprom transgaz Tomsk operates one linear production department of main gas pipelines (LPUMG) in Lensk in Yakutia, as well as three regional departments for the construction of facilities (RUSO) - in Olekminsk, Aldan and Neryungri. From him we learn the first, general information about the main gas pipeline under construction.

Vakhtovka cheerfully drives first through the city, then turns onto Berkakit, leaving for the Amur-Yakutsk highway. Halfway between Berkakit and Iyengra, the car turns left, and here, in the parking lot, we are met by the project manager of Krasnodargazstroy LLC Alexey Ivantsov. Further without him, no shift will pass. He will accompany us all the way to the gas pipeline. But you can ask him any questions, and he seems to know the answer to any of them.

But first, Alexey Valentinovich conducts a mandatory safety briefing. We sign in a special magazine.

Further about 15 minutes we go deep into the taiga. We cross an incomprehensible structure covered with snow in an endless forest clearing, along which a power line is installed. It is here that we learn for the first time that this is nothing but the main oil pipeline "Eastern Siberia - the Pacific Ocean" built eight or ten years ago, and also before our eyes. It works completely unnoticed by prying eyes, and, I must say, does not interfere with any movements of the inhabitants of the taiga.

CORRIDOR AND ROADS

This is where our first question to the experts arises: is it true that the Power of Siberia gas pipeline is being built in the “corridor” of the already operating main oil pipeline Eastern Siberia - the Pacific Ocean? "Truth, - Alexander Olegovich Rakushin answers. - In the Neryungri region, the distance between two wire systems is approximately one and a half to fifteen kilometers.

That is, by the standards of the thousand-kilometer distances of the taiga, very close. But in reality, "construction in the same corridor" with the ESPO is, of course, a rather arbitrary concept. You cannot jump from one pipe to another, and you will not see another pipe.

Therefore, everything here is actually being done anew, and a clearing in the taiga is being cut of its own. The only thing that can be used from the main oil pipeline is part of the technological roads, which, of course, makes the task of builders a little easier and allows you to slightly optimize the costs of infrastructure and energy supply.

The entire Neryungri region is a deaf taiga, swamps, numerous streams and rivers, steep slopes of hills. And the most difficult thing is the complete absence of roads, which have not been in the taiga since the day the world was created. The technological roads built earlier should help the builders of the Power of Siberia. This is how it generally works. And yet, practitioners say that everything is not so simple. Gas workers complain that the oil workers have chosen the best route, and they have to use, as it were, what is “remaining”.

The specifics of the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline is the lack of entrances to the linear route. Today, the design institute is considering options on how to ensure the delivery of pipes, materials and equipment. The project also provides for the construction of a road along the route, through which materials and equipment will be delivered for the construction of crane units and radio relay communication points and their further operation. In addition, it is necessary to understand that the route in the Neryungri region (and in many other areas of Yakutia) runs in a difficult mountainous area, where the steepness of the slopes sometimes reaches 33-34 degrees.

That is, in any case, builders cannot do without additional work. It takes a lot to blow up, cut, smooth slopes so that machinery can work on them.

CLEARING AND PIPES

Meanwhile, after driving around 15 minutes deep into the taiga, our shift turns right. For about half an hour we drive along a wide forest clearing, in which the future gas pipeline will be built. Along the way, we ask experts how it all began here.

In general, what is the construction of a gas pipeline in general? Briefly describe all the stages, they are route clearing, trenching, pipe delivery, double-pipe welding, string welding, seam control, isolation, insulation control, laying preparation, pipe laying, backfilling and so on. There are many other related operations. At each stage - the strictest control. And even after the completion of construction, there is still a set of work to be done on the construction of crane units, energy facilities, automation, electrochemical protection, communications, the continuation of the construction of bases for linear production departments of main gas pipelines and compressor stations.

The construction of the future gas pipeline began with the execution of afforestation (clearing) on ​​the route within the boundaries of the right of way. Then the topsoil is cut.

Even on a relatively flat part of the route, digging trenches is not complete without drilling and blasting - in our taiga there is a lot of rock and permafrost. Rocky stone richly lies both in depth and on the surface.

Few people even from the inhabitants of the Neryungri district know that we live, it turns out, on the territory of “stone rivers”. These are the so-called kurums - clusters of blocks. The Neryungri landscape is densely dotted with spots of kurums. Nothing grows on them, because the stones are constantly in motion. It is very slow, but it is enough to grind any plant into dust.

The builders of the gas pipeline know this, and their task is to take measures so that the kurums do not “wipe” the gas pipeline off the face of the earth. Everything must be perfect, and even the slightest damage to the structure of the main gas pipeline is absolutely unacceptable here.

The afforestation works include such operations as clearing the road from forests and shrubs, cutting steep longitudinal slopes (slopes), which are many in our area. Carrying out protective anti-landslide and anti-landslide measures, carrying out measures to ensure minimal freezing of the soil. A large amount of work is the construction of temporary roads, culverts, drainage and drainage facilities at the entrances to the highway and along it, as well as bridges and crossings over rivers, streams, ravines. Access roads are protected from snow drifts.

Temporary bases and warehouses for storing materials and equipment were arranged even earlier.

The second stage is transport and loading and unloading operations. On the technological road, along which we traveled for about an hour on a shift, every now and then we meet loaded Tatras. These vehicles carry technological cargo.

For the construction of the main gas pipeline, pipes, pipe sections, shut-off valves (cocks, gate valves), large-sized reinforced concrete products, insulating materials, installation equipment, mechanisms and other special cargoes are delivered to and transported along it. The main volume of transported goods is, of course, the pipes themselves and pipe sections. Pipes - beautiful, securely closed on both sides with plugs and in blue polyethylene - are driven by special cars - pipe carriers. We also visited the temporary storage base where the pipes are stored. It is located next to Berkakit station.

Pipe sections delivered to the site of installation work are usually unloaded from vehicles by pipelayers.

Two words about pipes. All of them are steel, Russian-made, including those produced by the Vyksa Metallurgical Plant and the Chelyabinsk Pipe Rolling Plant. Those that are now used in the Neryungri region, and we have seen them, are made by the Izhora Pipe Plant (St. Petersburg). These pipes have the most smooth coating inside. This technology reduces energy costs for gas transportation by reducing the roughness of the pipe and, accordingly, friction. External pipe insulation is made of new nanocomposite materials to ensure high corrosion resistance of the gas pipeline. Given that the Neryungri district belongs to regions with increased seismic activity, we use pipes with increased deformation capacity. There are also special technical solutions for their installation, which we will not go into, experts know them.

Almost simultaneously with the delivery and loading and unloading, earthworks are taking place at the construction site. This includes the creation of a shock-absorbing sand lining under the gas pipeline, dike, backfilling and reclamation. After laying out the route of the section of the main gas pipeline under construction and performing preparatory work, a shock-absorbing pad is constructed. The lining is constructed from imported sand, followed by compaction of the layers. The thickness of the shock-absorbing pad varies between 100-150 mm and must completely cover sharp stones, pieces of hard soil, etc. that can damage the factory anti-corrosion coating.

LAYING AND WELDING

And finally, here we are. South Yakut taiga, a few tens of kilometers northwest of Iengra, approximately 1212th kilometer of the main gas pipeline "Power of Siberia". The work here is going very well. There are not so many people, but those who are are top-class specialists, each movement of which is literally perfected. Also, the technique works clearly, which you can just admire here, getting literally aesthetic pleasure.

As we understood, two groups of specialists are working on the pipeline under construction. The first call themselves linemen - they make only the linear part of the gas pipeline, leaving gaps at the intersection of roads and utilities. The second - the so-called explosive brigades and brigades of piercers. They are engaged in crossings under railways and roads, as well as water obstacles.

Almost all of these people are highly qualified specialists. Since the main oil and gas pipelines in Neryungri are built, to put it mildly, not every day, these people in the region, as they say, are passing through. Most of them have been working at Gazprom for many years - they built gas pipelines in all corners of our country and even abroad. They will build it in the Neryungrinsky district - they will go further. The gas pipeline is very long, thousands of kilometers.

Welding looks very impressive on a gas pipeline under construction, which completely breaks all our previous ideas about this process. The welders working on the Power of Siberia gas pipeline here are closer in their functions to computer scientists than to a man in a mask with smoked glass. In their hands they have a remote control with buttons, and not a welding machine with an electrode. Before your eyes - a bunch of complex devices, almost like in an airplane.

So what do we see here in place? Huge pipe of the largest possible diameter - 1 420 mm. Equipment digs a trench for laying a gas pipeline. In parallel with the development of the trench in the finished areas, a sand cushion is being installed at the bottom of the trench. The cushion protects the pipeline insulation from damage during laying, and at the same time acts as a damper in the event of frost heaving of the soil.

Almost simultaneously with earthworks, the removal and laying of pipes on the route is carried out. Pipes are very carefully (one might say, gently) laid on soil prisms, which should not contain rock inclusions and wood residues, so that damage to the insulation does not occur.

The pipeline is welded into the so-called whips by automatic welding complexes. In one shift, at least 12 joints are welded into so-called lashes of various lengths. Here, as they say, options are possible. According to experts, on straight and flat sections with pipe lengths from 9 before 11,5 meters, the length of one lash can reach almost a kilometer. But we have not seen such lashes with our own eyes.

After welding the lashes, the preparation of the lash for laying begins. To do this, welded joints are isolated, sandblasting of the joint from rust and dirt is carried out. A special two-component mastic is applied, the joint is heated and the heat-shrinkable cuff is fixed.

Heating is done by induction coils. After that, the finished lash is laid in a trench and then protected with sand sprinkling.

Before backfilling, the pipeline is ballasted with weights. Ballasting of pipelines is a method of securing pipelines with the help of weighting loads or concreting when laying them on swampy or flooded soils.

There is also such a thing as ground protection screens (GZE). The purpose of the GZE, which at first I simply called "grids", was explained to me by the first deputy head of the department of RUSO Alexander Rakushin.

After the completion of the backfill, the pipeline is finally covered with soil, with a roller device. But it will be a little later, things have not yet reached this stage in the Neryungri district.

After welding, laying and backfilling, the main gas pipeline must be cleaned, tested for strength and checked for tightness. But this will happen at the very end of construction, that is, already in the future 2019.

FLOW METHOD

Work on the construction of the gas pipeline is organized by the so-called in-line method, simultaneously, in different sections. For this, special divisions are formed within the construction and installation department - complex technological flows (CFT). It's kind of like construction sites. Moreover, each of them is independent and equipped with everything necessary for work.

In fact, each complex technological flow is a site living in one of the four camps. In the summer of 2017, we went, for example, to the section of the gas pipeline behind Chulman. You need to go there first from Neryungri to Chulman, then a few kilometers from Chulman along the road to Nakhot, well known to the Neryungri people. Approximately in the middle of the road to "Nakhot" you need to turn into the taiga and about 10 kilometers to overcome in the taiga.

The place where we were now, in winter, belongs to the complex technological stream No. 3, the rotational camp of which is located one and a half kilometers from Iengra. However, in the Neryungri district, one organization, LLC Krasnodargazstroy, is working on the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline in all four sections-KTP. The first specialists of this company arrived in Chulman at the end of 2016. In Iyengra, active work began in February 2017. At about the same time - in Khatymi and Maly Nimnyr.

At all four sites in South Yakutia, about 2 thousand specialists and almost a thousand pieces of equipment. At the same time, Stroygazmontazh, to which Krasnodargazstroy belongs, has been increasing the pace of construction throughout the past year. In December of the year, he reached peak loading.

Experts say that work on the construction of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline is faster and easier in winter than in summer. Less natural obstacles in the form of heavy rains, flooded streams, wetlands and so on. The only restriction: the work is carried out at an air temperature not lower than 45 degrees of frost. I must say that it is usually colder “on the pipe” than in the city, and such temperatures have already happened in the Neryungri region this winter. At minus 45 technology stops. But such downtime due to weather conditions at a well-organized construction site is not so frequent.

As already mentioned, four shift camps for the builders of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline have been built in the Neryungri District. Villages are, of course, different. Although they are all located outside the settlements, in the taiga, but in Chulman, for example, civilization is close. Near a relatively large village with people and shops. But, for example, the village of Maly Nimnyr in the Aldan region, where another workers' settlement was built near Krasnodargazstroy, is a completely abandoned area. To the nearest signs of civilization - 40 kilometers. Once in Soviet times, Nimnyr was a settlement of geologists, in addition, former prisoners lived here. The place of the town was chosen here for two reasons: firstly, the Lena highway passes nearby, and secondly, there are preserved electrical networks.

In Iyengra, civilization is very close to the town of builders of the main gas pipeline. The village is no more than one kilometer away, the Lena federal highway is absolutely nearby. Electricity is fine too. But still, people have to travel about 30 kilometers to work. This is about an hour one way, because, you see, the speed of shift workers on technological roads is not so high.

But even these shift camps are temporary. When the areas where work is carried out move away from the base for a considerable distance, the base moves, as they say, "following the pipe" to a new location. Our shift camps, apparently, have yet to undergo this procedure. The main gas pipeline will be built for almost two more years.

ALL VILLAGES

In general, the builders of the Power of Siberia main gas pipeline deployed very actively in the Neryungri region, “marking themselves” with their capacities in almost every settlement. We have already talked about the towns in Chulman, Iyengra, Khatymi and Maly Nimnyr. There is a temporary storage base in Berkakit, where the pipes arriving at the station for the Power of Siberia are stored and sorted. In Serebryany Bor, in the immediate vicinity of the Neryungri GRES, there is now a temporary office and a canteen for the company's employees.

And at the exit from Neryungri to the Amur-Yakutsk mainline, there is a construction base for the linear production department of Gazprom Transgaz Tomsk LLC. Now there are still a few wagons and a helipad on which the helicopter of the general director of the company, who arrived to meet us from Aldan, landed Anatoly Titov. Until the end of 2019, in the same place, in the immediate vicinity of the village of Serebryany Bor, an office of the Neryungri management of the company will be built.

It is OOO Gazprom transgaz Tomsk that will ensure the operation of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline. Accordingly, after 2019, it will hire local personnel - not just for construction, but for permanent work on the Power of Siberia gas pipeline.

Gazprom Transgaz Tomsk is a subsidiary of PJSC Gazprom headquartered in Tomsk. The Company ensures the operation of gas transmission systems in 14 regions of Siberia and the Far East. Yakutia will become 15th region in 2019. The length of operated main oil and gas pipelines is more than 9 thousand kilometers. The annual volume of gas transported by the enterprise exceeds 19 billion cube m. OOO Gazprom Transgaz Tomsk includes 22 branch, including 16 linear production departments of main gas pipelines, 9 compressor stations, 1 NKS, 36 gas pumping units, 128 gas distribution stations, 11 automobile gas-filling compressor stations.

In the next publication of the SakhaNews news agency from the Power of Siberia gas pipeline under construction, we will talk about the work of the temporary storage base in Berkakit, about the meeting with the General Director of Gazprom Transgaz Tomsk Anatoly Titov, let's talk about salaries on the gas pipeline and employment prospects for local residents.

Oleg SOLODUKHIN.

Neryungri district, Yakutia.

On Tuesday, March 31, on the "eastern route". The agreement was signed in Moscow on October 13, 2014. It defines the main conditions for cooperation between China and the Russian Federation in the energy sector.

See the AiF.ru infographic for the projected routes for the supply of natural gas from the Russian Federation to the PRC.

It is planned that the length of the gas pipeline will be 2.6 thousand km, of which:

  • 206 km will pass through the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug;
  • 338 km will pass through the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug;
  • 821 km will pass through the Tomsk region;
  • 241 km will pass along the Novosibirsk, and the last 1 thousand km - along the Altai Territory and the Altai Republic.

"Power of Siberia"

The Power of Siberia gas pipeline will pass through Khabarovsk and will connect production centers in the Irkutsk Region and Yakutia. The end point of the route will be Vladivostok.

The cost of building the Power of Siberia gas pipeline and organizing supplies from the Chayandinskoye field is estimated at about $30 billion.

The length of the pipeline will be about four thousand km. Estimated pipe diameter is 1420 mm.

"Altai"

The gas pipeline will run between gas fields in Western Siberia and the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in western China. There it can connect with the Chinese East-West gas pipeline, which will bring gas to Shanghai.

The planned length of the gas pipeline is about 6,700 km, of which 2,600 km are to pass through Russia. Estimated pipe diameter is 1420 mm.

What did Gazprom and China's state oil and gas company CNPC agree on?

On May 21, 2014, the Russian gas holding Gazprom and China's state-owned oil and gas company CNPC signed a contract for the sale and purchase of natural gas with delivery via the eastern route.

The contract provides for the supply of 38 billion cubic meters of gas per year to China (after 2018, exports may increase to 60 billion cubic meters. For comparison, the EU countries buy about 125 billion cubic meters of gas from the Russian Federation, according to data for last year).

The agreement is valid for 30 years, and the value of the contract is $400 billion, Gazprom chairman Alexei Miller said. He did not name the base price for gas under the contract, citing a trade secret. But gas market experts have calculated that it is in the range of $360-390 per 1,000 cubic meters. For comparison, Gazprom sells fuel to Europe at an average price of $370-380 per 1,000 cubic meters.

To implement the project of gas supplies to the PRC, Russia will need investments in the amount of $55 billion (China - $22 billion), which will be directed to the development of fields and the construction of a gas pipeline.

According to Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak, fuel supplies to China will begin in 4-6 years.