OREANDA-NEWS. April 26, 2013. Central Asian gas exported to China hit the 50 billion cubic meter (bcm) mark over the weekend, the Chinese ministry of land and resources reported.

The gas originates in Turkmenistan and is transported throughout Central Asia via the Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline. The 1,137-mile pipeline has a capacity to carry between 30 and 40 billion cubic meters per year to the East Asian state. 50 bcm of gas is the energy equivalent of 80 million tons of coal, and would power Beijing for six uninterrupted years, according to the Xinjiang Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau as reported by the Xinhua news agency.

The pipeline connects to another West-East gas pipeline, and was initiated in 2009. It also meanders through Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan before arriving at its destination. The Turkmen-Chinese pipeline hit the 10 bcm mark in May 2011, and hit the 25 bcm mark in March 2012. Turkmenistan inked a deal with Beijing in June 2012 to provide energy-hungry China with 65 bcm of gas per year.