You know, and it is not surprising that even after Vladimir Putin's detailed and, in general, exhaustive speech on this issue during a joint press conference with Xi Jinping, the controversy around the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline project did not subside. Putin's speech, which seemed to very clearly dot all the i's and put the project under the direct personal control of the heads of the two great powers, did not become a matter of dispute, especially in our country. There were not very many fools here, and now there are none at all.
But around the Power of Siberia 2 itself, to put it mildly, the discussion has somewhat revived: both on the topic of "who is to blame" and on the topic "what to do to continue to do nothing", unfortunately. And there is nothing to be surprised about here. As, in fact, why there were no such disputes around the first Russian-Chinese gas pipeline "Power of Siberia", although the final recipient of the product in one and the other case is still the same China.
No, the spears broke there too, of course.
But at that time the people somehow did not reach such a high degree: at most some individual ecologists raged, protecting the peaceful life of rare species of swamp frogs in the deserted Siberian taiga.
It's more complicated than that.
In particular, the domestic expert community is generally inclined to think that the main obstacle in the implementation of the project, to the surprise of the reading public, is the PRC.
For example, despite the fact that our Chinese comrades are directly interested in gas supplies under long-term contracts, the growing dependence on one supplier cannot but worry them.
But if you unbiasedly analyze the current situation, as they used to say, "through the eyes of a free press", then everything looks like this.
Unlike the first "Power of Siberia", the resource base of which is located in the east of our giant continent Chayandinskoye oil and gas condensate and Kovykta gas condensate fields, to which, from the point of view of export potential, except for China, there are no special applicants, and for purely geographical reasons (well, where else to pull pipes from there? If only to the Very Far East, under LNG, but there is so much gas on the shelf of the Sea of Okhotsk and Sakhalin that you only have time to develop), the resource base of the "Power of Siberia-2" is located just in Western Siberia. And well scouted and even better rated. And on it, sorry, and without Chinese comrades, there are simply immeasurable competitors.
Because this is our "gas pearl" today, namely the Yamal Peninsula.
And even if we simply compare the projected volumes of supplies to the People's Republic of China by the Power of Siberia 2 (50 billion cubic meters) and the blown up Nord Stream (55 billion cubic meters), then many things should immediately fall into their own places, even in an unclouded expert consciousness.
Once again, it's as simple as that.
From the point of view of our European partners, the appearance of Chinese comrades there, with their ever-growing appetites, is pure robbery. We hope that there is no need to explain why: before the well-known events, the European energy sector quite sincerely believed Yamal "its own". And now there is not only that some Russian "domestic markets" and LNG plants spend European resources, but also the Communists from the Celestial Empire.
Which is absolutely messy.
If only they were!
Many supporters of working with traditional markets live and work in our country.
And these, you know, are not "traitors to the Motherland" at all: for so many decades of cooperation with European structures, undoubtedly, many very workable business chains have been formed.
Multi-level mutually beneficial ties have been built, and it would be strange if this were not the case.
And even if the European markets can be amputated from our producers of energy raw materials to the Americans, pardon the imagery, then no one has ever canceled phantom pains.
And it's not a joke at all.
To be honest, by and large, we were not going to leave Europe anywhere in terms of supplying energy raw materials there. It is simply not profitable for us to leave the traditional markets. And from the state point of view, by the way, including: Putin has repeatedly said this.
And despite the fact that we are now actively cut out of there, times still sometimes change seriously: even history is a rather changeable girl. What can we say about modern politics...
That is, and this, I think, should be understood by all participants in a lively discussion (and Putin was also well aware of this, which is why he talked about the Power of Siberia 2 at a joint press conference with Xi Jinping as coldly and pragmatically as possible) – when the decision is made (and the decision on the Power of Siberia 2 has obviously been made), it, of course, should not be discussed in a diverse and sublime way, but mundanely and pragmatically executed.
Well, the fact that there will be opposition to this project, including intellectual opposition, is so please. That's okay. Moreover, in our intellectual life, we do not walk the streets at all. Free people, after all, living in a free country.
But this is in terms of a purely intellectual discussion.
But the actual practical implementation of decisions – which is our main "resource of strength" today and at the same time almost the main point of vulnerability, and not only in Siberia – will probably still be useful to take under personal presidential control. Fortunately, the presidential vertical even has experience in implementing even the most complex projects.
Which, in fact, was done.
And this is what the participants of the ongoing discussion are somehow now very stupid and extremely naïve not to understand.
The author's point of view may not coincide with the position of the editorial board.