As of August 22, the Khorgos Initial Compressor Station, the first station along both the Second and Third West-East Gas Pipeline routes, has cumulatively delivered more than 600 billion cubic meters of natural gas. This milestone was confirmed by China Oil & Gas Pipeline Network Corporation (PipeChina).

Located at a key hub along the Belt and Road Initiative, the Khorgos station serves as the entry point for channeling cross-border natural gas from Central Asia and coal-based gas from Ili to central and eastern regions of China. With an annual transmission capacity of 60 billion cubic meters, the station boasts the largest installed capacity of any single compressor station in Asia.

Since beginning operations in 2009, the facility has maintained a safe and stable operational record spanning over 6,000 days. Its peak daily throughput can reach up to 163 million cubic meters, ensuring a steady flow of energy across the pipeline network.

A station official from PipeChina's Western Pipeline subsidiary, Dong Hao, highlighted the environmental impact, noting that 600 billion cubic meters of natural gas equates to replacing more than 798 million tons of standard coal. This shift has contributed to reducing carbon dioxide emissions by over 877 million tons. The clean energy supplied through the West-East Gas Pipeline system meets the daily consumption needs of more than 500 million people.

The Khorgos station has fully deployed an intelligent operations and maintenance system that integrates various smart technologies. These include cloud-based laser methane detectors, machine vision AI analysis, and intelligent compressor diagnostic systems. This comprehensive framework provides full-situation awareness and integrated centralized control, upgrading station management from traditional manual inspections to smart governance.

Furthermore, using waste heat from gas-turbine-driven compressor units, the station has developed the nation's first waste heat power generation project at a gas transmission station. This initiative achieves zero direct emissions from the station's units while generating an average annual electricity output exceeding 65 million kilowatt-hours.

Zhao Jilong, head of the Khorgos operation area under PipeChina's Western Pipeline subsidiary, outlined future plans. The team will continue leveraging intelligent methods to ensure the safe and stable operation of the Second and Third West-East Gas Pipelines, maintaining a daily transmission of over 100 million cubic meters of natural gas to all parts of the country.