Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan and Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sechin held the sixth meeting of the Sino-Russian energy negotiators in Tianjin on the 21st. Observers believe that this meeting means that China-Russia energy cooperation has entered a "harvest period."

As a direct result of the start of the Sino-Russian energy negotiation mechanism in 2008, the Russian section of the Sino-Russian crude oil pipeline was completed last month, and the construction of the China section is currently in the final stage. According to the design, Russian crude oil will enter China through this pipeline at the end of October.

In 2010, the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the explosion of the oil pipeline in Dalian made the safety of crude oil transportation once again the focus of global attention.

Song Kui, a researcher at the Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Social Sciences and an expert on Sino-Russian issues, said that the crude oil pipelines between China and Russia are long distances, and that they can cross the virgin forest and permafrost in the Daxing'anling, China's most important ecological function zone, and can solve the problems of leakage prevention, antifreeze, and fire prevention. Anti-theft and other security issues are the key to the smooth running of this “black artery”.

The China-Russian crude oil pipeline project in China started on May 18, 2009. The starting point is Mohe County, the northernmost of China, and the terminal is Daqing Oilfield, the largest crude oil production base in China. The general contractor is Daqing Oilfield Engineering Construction Co., Ltd. At the peak, nearly 10,000 people worked at the same time along the 927-kilometer line.

“This is the first time that China has built crude oil pipelines through virgin forests and permafrost, and there is also a lack of mature and available construction experience in the world.” Head of China-Russian Crude Pipeline Construction in China, Daqing Oilfield Construction Group Sino-Russian Crude Oil Pipeline Mohe-Daqing Line Project Manager Lv Cheng said.

Due to time constraints, construction still needs to be carried out normally in winter. Welding at a low temperature of minus 40 degrees Celsius makes it a technical challenge to ensure that pipes do not crack when the temperature changes drastically. “We have invented the method of pre-heating the welds and slowly cooling them with heat after welding. At the same time, the 135-degree angle operation is completed once in the welding process, which ensures the stable and reliable welding quality,” says welder Liu Yang.

In the construction of crude oil pipelines in high-cold areas, frozen soil is a major “buster” for security. According to the data, in the 1970s, the Lempa oil pipeline in Golmud, western China, leaked 30 times due to ice blocking and frost heave damage.

The Sino-Russian crude oil pipeline in China runs 104 kilometers through the tundra. “We installed a monitoring device on the pipeline to keep abreast of changes in the temperature and humidity of the frozen soil layer. Once the displacement occurs, we can take timely measures.” Lu Cheng said that in order to improve the insurance factor, the pipeline uses high-quality thermal insulation pipes and uses coarse-grained soil. Backfill and wood chips to enhance the insulation effect.

The Daxinganling area has about 6.5 million hectares of virgin forests and frequent fires in the spring and autumn. “The pipeline is deeply buried and the top of the pipe is 2.2 meters away from the ground to avoid contact with the forest fire.” Yu Hongbin, project manager of the Moda Pipeline External Power Project Department, said: “The grass roots with shallow roots are selected for vegetation restoration along the pipeline, so that even grassroots Burning does not endanger pipeline safety."

In a variety of crude oil delivery methods, closed pipeline transportation is recognized as the safest option. On the one hand, the compression ratio of liquid crude oil is very small. Even if it leaks, it will not produce a tearing explosion. On the one hand, the crude oil in the pipeline will not burn easily unless it directly contacts the open flame. Despite this, China-Russia crude oil pipelines have built large-scale mobile and fixed fire protection systems along the way, and the pipelines have been put on standby after the oil has passed.

According to plans of relevant Chinese authorities, after the opening of the crude oil pipeline, at least 200 people will be inspected along the route every day in China. Lu Cheng said that this is to ensure safety, timely investigation of hidden dangers, and at the same time prevent illegal acts of stealing crude oil.

Lu inherited that the crude oil pipeline has also set up a number of stations and control valves in important areas such as nature reserves and rivers. Once leakage and other dangerous situations occur, measures can be taken immediately to minimize the environmental impact.

In Daqing Oilfield, 18 100,000 cubic meters of oil storage tanks built for Russian oil transfer have been completed. Staff revealed that Russian oil will be re-inputed and transported to Fushun, Qinhuangdao and Dalian after being transferred here.

In 2009, China consumed 388 million tons of crude oil, including 189 million tons of self-produced oil and 199 million tons of imported oil. The degree of dependence on foreign oil exceeds 50%. According to the agreement between the two parties, Russia will supply 15 million tons of crude oil to China each year through China-Russia crude oil pipelines for a period of 20 years.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin attended the opening ceremony of the Russian section of the Sino-Russian crude oil pipeline on August 29 in Skovodrotino, Amur region. He stated that Russia will provide 30 million tons of crude oil to the Asia Pacific region, including China, and gradually increase it each year. To 50 million tons.

Wang Yongchun, general manager of Daqing Oilfield Co., Ltd., said that while putting on a multi-layer “safety coat” for the Sino-Russian crude oil pipeline, Daqing Oilfield will also upgrade the existing road along this pipeline in order to carry out emergency treatment to ensure maximum protection. China-Russia energy cooperation security.