Over the past decade the two sides have announced supply deals but said a final price would be negotiated later. "What is new here is that there is an agreement on the price," said Lin Boqiang, director of the China Center for Energy Economics Research at Xiamen University. Mr. Lin said he wasn't aware of the pricing details of the deal.
The shipments to China would also represent a nearly 25% increase in Russia's gas exports outside the former Soviet Union. Mr. Putin said that under the deal, Russia would spend at least $55 billion to develop the necessary infrastructure in Russia, while Beijing would spend $20 billion within its territory.
The two sides didn't mention whether China would take stakes or participate in developing gas supplies on the Russian side, something experts say has been long sought by Beijing as a way to secure supplies.