Sino-Russian energy ties strengthened

China and Russia have signed a series of energy deals during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Beijing. Two pipelines will bring natural gas to China, while China National Petroleum Corp has been given the green light to jointly develop some of Russia’s oil and gas fields with state firms. CNPC announced it was teaming up with Russia’s state oil company OAO Rosneft in China to refine crude and sell gasoline, among other products. A joint declaration signed by President Hu Jintao and Putin declared energy cooperation to be �entering a qualitatively new level�. Putin said Russia would deliver up to 80 billion cubic meters of gas a year to China in the future. Russian officials have refused to say when the first of the major pipelines would be up and running.