Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan said Tuesday that the Sino-Russian energy cooperation enjoyed broad prospects.

Wang made the remarks while co-chairing the sixth round of the Sino-Russian energy negotiators' meetings with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin in Tianjin.

China was willing to work with Russia to expand energy cooperation in areas such as oil, natural gas, nuclear power, electric power and coal in the spirit of active cooperation and mutual benefit, Wang said.

"All-around and deep energy cooperation between the two countries will be of strategic significance," he said.

Leaders of the two countries attached great importance to bilateral energy cooperation, and the two sides had made great achievements within the framework of the meeting mechanism, he said.

The latest round of the meetings could pave the way for Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's upcoming visit to China.

In August, Russia officially launched its section of a pipeline that will deliver east Siberian oil to China, and the pipeline is expected to be put into operation by the end of 2010.

The pipeline project is part of a bilateral loan-for-oil deal reached in February 2009 between the two countries, under which China offered Russia a 25-billion-U.S.-dollar long-term loan and Russia supplied a total of 300 million tonnes of oil through pipelines to China from 2011 to 2030.

Wang said the two countries also pushed forward natural gas cooperation, enjoyed rapidly increasing coal cooperation and sound cooperation in electricity trading, nuclear energy, energy efficiency, new energy, and energy equipment manufacturing.

Sino-Russian ties were developing smoothly, as highlighted by increasing mutual political trust and closer practical cooperation, and faced important development opportunities, Wang said.

Sechin said Russia was willing to make efforts to ensure a long-term and stable supply of crude oil via the Russia-China pipelines, and promote bilateral cooperation in natural gas, coal, electricity trading, nuclear energy, energy efficiency and new energy.

Russia felt satisfied with the sound development momentum of bilateral energy cooperation, and the efforts exerted by the meeting mechanism, Sechin said.

The achievements made in energy cooperation reflected the high-level bilateral partnership of strategic coordination, he said.

After the meeting, the two sides signed three energy cooperation documents, which covered areas such as oil, coal and coal-to-liquids.

Wang and Sechin also attended a foundation-laying ceremony for the China-Russia Eastern Petrochemical (Tianjin) Oil Refinery Tuesday afternoon.

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