A new State-owned company, which will be in charge of building and operating the Heilongjiang section of the eastbound route of the Sino-Russia natural gas pipeline, was established in Harbin, capital city of Northeast China’s Heilongjiang province on July 31.

Heilongjiang Natural Gas Pipeline Network Co was founded by Heilongjiang Jiangchenneng Investment Corporation, Beijing Gas Corporation, China Gas Corporation, ENN Energy Holdings Ltd and Shaanxi Gas Group, with registered capital of 1.5 billion yuan ($219.9 million).

The eastbound route of the natural gas pipeline originates in Irkutsk Oblast, passing through the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic, Amur Oblast, Jewish Autonomous Oblast and Khabarovsk border region in Russia, before entering China at Heihe city, Heilongjiang province. The pipeline terminates in Shanghai, East China.

Upon completion, which is scheduled to be in 2019, the pipeline will provide China with 38 billion cubic meters of natural gas from Russia each year. It will have far-reaching consequences for optimizing China's energy structure, cutting emissions and improving air quality.

The Russian part of the pipeline began construction in eastern Siberia during 2014.

The pipeline construction project in Heilongjiang will include 36 routes at around 2,800 kilometers long, linking the main eastbound route of the gas pipeline to major cities in the province. Total investment in the project will hit 13 billion yuan.

When the pipeline is put into use, it will provide a large quantity of gas for Heilongjiang, helping the province reduce its dependency on oil and coal due to the shortage of gas fields in the province.

 Representatives of Heilongjiang Jiangchenneng Investment Corporation, Beijing Gas Corporation, China Gas Corporation, ENN Energy Holdings Ltd and Shaanxi Gas Group, pose for a group photo at the establishment ceremony of the Heilongjiang Natural Gas Pipeline Network Co in Harbin on July 31. [Photo/dbw.cn]

Work on the eastbound route of the China-Russia natural gas pipeline begins in Heihe, Heilongjiang province, on June 29, 2015. [Photo/IC]